Norman Baker: To ask the Solicitor-General what representations she has received concerning the safety of the conviction of Gary Critchley; and if she will make a statement. [292384]
The Solicitor-General: No representations have been received concerning the safety of the conviction of Gary Critchley.
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Solicitor-General what proportion of serious violent crimes were disposed of by means of police caution rather than a court appearance in (a) Northamptonshire and (b) England in the last three years for which figures are available. [290672]
Claire Ward: I have been asked to reply.
Information showing the number of offenders cautioned and defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for serious violent offences in Northamptonshire and England from 2005-07 (latest available) is shown in the following table. Data for 2008 are due to be available towards the end of 2009.
| Number of offenders cautioned( 1) and defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for serious violent offences( 2) , in Northamptonshire and England, 2005-07( 3, 4) | |||||||||
| 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | |||||||
| Cautioned | Proceeded against | Number cautioned as a percentage of those cautioned or proceeded against | Cautioned | Proceeded against | Number cautioned as a percentage of those cautioned or proceeded against | Cautioned | Proceeded against | Number cautioned as a percentage of those cautioned or proceeded against | |
| (1) From 1 June 2000, the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 came into force nationally and removed the use of cautions for persons under 18 and replaced them with reprimands and warnings. These figures have been included in the totals. (2) Covers the following: Homicide and child destruction Causing death by dangerous driving Attempted murder Wounding or inflicting grievous bodily harm without intent Racially aggravated wounding or inflicting grievous bodily harm Causing death by aggravated vehicle taking (3) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (4) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (5) The number of defendants proceeded against for Northamptonshire reflects the data received from the magistrates courts. However, during the period covered by the table, there were data quality issues. Hence, it would be unwise to place much credence in the drop of prosecutions over time and thus in the increase in the percentage cautioned if derived. Source: Evidence and Analysis Unit, Office for Criminal Justice Reform. | |||||||||
Kate Hoey: To ask the Minister for the Olympics for what reasons CLM was paid £60.2 million by the Olympic Delivery Authority in performance-related payments up to March 2009. [289243]
Tessa Jowell: As outlined in the Olympic Delivery Authority's (ODA) 2008-09 Annual Report, performance payments are payable to CLM for the achievement of pre-agreed key performance indicators for the delivery of programme milestones and cost targets.
Payments to CLM during the financial year 2008-09 reflect the increase in scale of the project in the last year as construction activity increased, and the strong progress being made as the project remains on track and within budget.
The ODA, working with CLM, achieved significant savings of £390 million in the last year. The savings derive primarily from reduction in scope and value engineering changes, procurement savings, inflation and VAT savings, and have been applied to cost pressures as they have arisen. In particular, they have been used to help fund the Olympic Village and ensuring that the programme overall can be delivered within budget.
CLM's contract is heavily incentivised and payment to them is dependent on meeting strict performance measures tied to delivering on time, to budget and to a high standard.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how much (a) her Office and (b) the Government Olympic Executive spent on newspaper advertising by publication in the latest year for which figures are available. [289479]
Tessa Jowell: In 2008-09, the amounts spent on newspaper advertising were as follows:
Private office of the Minister for the Olympics—Nil.
Government Olympic Executive—£16,210.44 (comprising payments of £5,551.96 to the Central Office of Information; and £10,658.48 to Sports Recruitment International for advertisements in the Guardian and Timesonline). All advertising expenditure by the Government Olympic Executive was for recruitment purposes.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Minister for the Olympics when she plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam, dated 16 February 2009, reference Evans/110209/st/2. [288638]
Tessa Jowell [holding answer 21 July 2009]: On receipt of the letter dated 16 February, my officials forwarded a copy of my response (via email) to the hon. Member's constituency office in February 2009.
Due to an administrative oversight a written response was not sent to the hon. Member's letter of 16 February. I have replied to this letter on 29( )July 2009 and apologise for the delay.
Bob Spink: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how much was paid in bonuses to (a) directors, (b) senior managers, (c) specialist and delivery managers and (d) executive support and administration staff in the Olympic Delivery Authority in the last 24 months. [280616]
Tessa Jowell: Staff are broken into pay bands across the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA). Details of performance related pay (PRP) payments in each pay band for the year ended 31 March 2009 are set out in the following table:
| Pay band | Employee type | Numbers of employees | Total PRP paid( 1) (£) | Average PRP payment (£) |
| (1) Excluding national insurance. (2) Actual bonus agreed by the Remuneration Committee was £209,566. The CEO voluntarily deferred half that amount. | ||||
The equivalent figure for the year ended 31 March 2008 is approximately £1.7 million. A breakdown into pay bands for that year appears in the following table:
| Pay band | Employee type | Numbers of employees | Total PRP paid1 (£) | Average PRP payment (£) |
| Note: Excluding national insurance. | ||||
Kate Hoey: To ask the Minister for the Olympics for what reasons the Chief Executive of the Olympic Delivery Authority was awarded a bonus of £209,000 in respect of 2008-09; and whose agreement was sought before the bonus was awarded. [289249]
Tessa Jowell: The chief executive of the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), David Higgins, has a performance-based pay element within his contract agreed by the Minister for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. This is linked to delivery on time and within budget. The basis of performance pay is agreed by DCMS and the level is determined by the remuneration committee of the ODA Board.
The ODA’s Annual Report and Accounts for 2008-09, copies of which have been placed in the House Library, records the progress in 2008-09, this records significant achievements including:
keeping the programme on track and on budget;
delivering the first venue, Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy in November 2008, on time and within budget;
delivering the £288 million Power Lines Undergrounding Project in December 2008 on time and on budget;
starting work on the Main Stadium, the Aquatics Centre and the Velodrome ahead of schedule; and
meeting challenging cost and health and safety targets.
On the basis of his contract the remuneration committee determined that a performance related payment of £209,566 was the appropriate amount to recognise the chief executive’s performance, However, Mr. Higgins said, in July, that he had voluntarily agreed to defer half of his performance-based pay until 2012, subject to the satisfactory delivery of the current programme and scope, within the maximum available funding agreed by the Minister.
As John Armitt, Chair of the ODA said “None of our progress over the year would have been possible without the hard work of the team at the ODA led by David Higgins”.
Kate Hoey: To ask the Minister for the Olympics if she will make it her policy that the expense claims of the Chief Executive of the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) be itemised on the ODA’s website. [289250]
Tessa Jowell: A summary of expenses for the Olympic Delivery Authority chairman, chief executive, board members and directors is available on the London 2012 website. The summary is itemised for hotel, entertainment and other costs.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what estimate she has made of the amount of sponsorship and advertising financing by manufacturers and retailers of alcoholic drinks of the London 2012 Olympics. [291360]
Tessa Jowell [holding answer 16 September 2009]: There are a number of possible categories that the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) is exploring to raise sponsorship revenue, including in the alcoholic drinks sector. Most previous games have had a domestic commercial provider of beer and wine, including Beijing in 2008.
Currently, LOCOG has no commercial partners for the provision of alcoholic drinks. I am unable to disclose any estimates for this sponsorship category as this would be commercially sensitive.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 5W—continued
Dr. Evan Harris: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what discussions she has had with the International Olympic Committee on the number of cycling events to be open to (a) men and (b) women at the London 2012 Olympics; and if she will make a statement. [290665]
Tessa Jowell [holding answer 9 September 2009]: I have not had direct discussions with the International Olympic Committee. However, the Minister for Sport and I have had discussions with the British Olympic Association and UK Sport. I have also spoken to British Cycling on this matter. The International Cycling Federation recently submitted a request to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for new cycling events to be included in the 2012 Olympic programme. The IOC Executive Board indicated that this could happen, especially if the new events increase the participation of women at the games and on condition that they replace events already on the programme. Current events can be replaced with new ones only if the total number of athletes is maintained. A final decision will be made at the IOC congress in October.
Alistair Burt: To ask the Minister for the Olympics (1) how many of the construction workers at the Olympic Park who are classified as local residents had lived in the area for less than (a) three months, (b) six months and (c) one year prior to their employment at the Olympic Park; [285107]
(2) what criteria are used to classify construction workers wishing to obtain employment at the Olympic Park as local residents. [285110]
Tessa Jowell:
Only workers that give a permanent address in one of the five host boroughs are counted as local. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has adopted
the definition used by HM Revenue and Customs and other public authorities which deems a person to be resident in an area from the day they move to a permanent and specific address. As there is no minimum period of residence required for a person to be classified as being a resident, the ODA does not report on this information.
Each worker on the Olympic Park must provide a recognised permanent address. As part of this process UK Border Agency (UKBA) staff work on site with the ODA and contractors to ensure that people employed on the Olympic Park are legally entitled to do so. UKBA have been on the site performing this role since April 2008.
The Government and the ODA are committed to creating a jobs and skills legacy for London and the UK from the London 2012 games. A whole range of measures has been put in place to ensure local people are well placed to benefit from employment and training on the Olympic site including being given 48 hours exclusive access to job vacancies through local brokerage services.
Mike Penning: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what assessment she has made of the legacy to Hertfordshire from the London 2012 Olympics. [289431]
Tessa Jowell: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Broxbourne (Mr. Walker) on 1 September 2009, Official Report, columns 162W and 163W.
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how much funding under which budgetary headings will be allocated under the programme delivery budget for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. [284552]
Tessa Jowell [holding answer 6 July 2009]: Of the public sector budget of £9.325 billion:
£8.099 billion, including contingency of up to £1.972 billion, is available to the Olympic Delivery Authority for the venues and infrastructure construction programme;
£290 million has been invested in maximising the benefit to elite and community sport of hosting the 2012 games;
£66 million is the Government's planned contribution to the cost of hosting the Paralympic games;
£32 million has been allocated to the Look programme;
£838 million, including £238m contingency, has been allocated to Security.
I refer the hon. Member to the January 2008 and January 2009 Annual Reports on the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games and to the Quarterly Economic Reports on the Games published in May and July 2009, all of which contain more detailed information.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what measures she has introduced to ensure that the provision of (a) plants, (b) trees and (c) shrubs for the London 2012 Olympics have a low environmental impact. [291685]
Tessa Jowell: All contracts for the supply of plants are let in accordance with the Olympic Delivery Authority’s (ODA) Sustainability Strategy which, among other things, sets standards for minimising energy, waste and water use, and includes transport miles.
As many of the trees, shrubs, herbaceous plants and seed as possible are specified in contract documents to be of British origin for ecological reasons. This is in order to meet the Olympic Biodiversity Action Plan targets for Games and Transformation as well as reducing transport and energy input. Peat-free composts are also specified in all the ODA’s contracts for plant supply.
The ODA is also installing an irrigation system to ensure the establishment of all planting. It will use a non-potable water supply, designed to reduce water demand.
Advanced plant procurement has secured approximately 2,000 semi mature trees from a UK nursery. The contract has also been let for the advanced procurement of approximately 240,000 wetland plants from a UK supplier. Current work is ongoing to secure advanced growing of herbaceous plants for 2012 Gardens. Clauses included in the plant procurement contracts require certain environmental standards to be met for nursery stock production and supply of stock.
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what expenditure the House of Commons Commission incurred in commissioning the report on carbon comparison of water provision options for the House’s committee rooms. [291459]
Nick Harvey: The cost of the report “A carbon comparison of water provision options for the House of Commons committee rooms” was £7,000.
Bob Spink: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what expenditure under what budgetary heading was incurred in respect of the East of England Regional Grand Committee meeting of 8 September 2009. [291832]
Nick Harvey: The identifiable expenditure incurred in respect of the East of England Regional Grand Committee meeting of 8 September 2009 is expected to amount to around £1,600. The budgetary headings are travel and subsistence expenses for staff from the Department of Chamber and Committee Services (clerks, Doorkeepers, Hansard sub-editors) and the provision of sound equipment by the House’s contractors Ubiqus UK Ltd. (Westminster Sound Systems).
Mr. Hurd: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what guidance has been given on using computer facilities in the House to register domain names. [288682]
Nick Harvey: No guidance on using computer facilities within the House of Commons to register domain names has been issued.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham of 24 April 2009, Official Report, column 948W, on Members: email, what the cost is of the encryption software recommended by Parliamentary Information and Communication Technology service. [288674]
Nick Harvey: The cost of the software per user is £63 excluding VAT.
John Mann: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how many hon. Members have a parliamentary car parking pass. [291988]
Nick Harvey: There are currently 329 hon. Members with valid parking permits.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how many outreach officers the House employs; and what cost in 2008-09. [289459]
Nick Harvey: The Parliamentary Outreach service currently employs eight outreach staff, six of whom are regional outreach officers. The regional outreach officers work mainly with community and voluntary groups and in the museums libraries and archives sector. They also support select committees.
Parliament’s Education Service employs four educational outreach officers, who work in schools and train and support teachers in the delivery of the political literacy element of the citizenship curriculum and the politics curriculum.
Both these services are bicameral, the House of Lords paying for 30 per cent. of the costs. Current annual staff costs, including pension and national insurance contributions, as at July 2009, are as follows:
| Annual cost of outreach, as at July 2009 | ||
| £ | ||
| Total cost | House of Commons share | |
Mr. Hurd: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what steps are being taken to prevent future infections of the parliamentary network by computer viruses. [288679]
Nick Harvey: PICT frequently reviews and updates systems, in line with industry standards and practices, to manage the risk of computer infections.
John Mason: To ask the Leader of the House how many external training courses were attended by staff of her Office in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of each course. [289608]
Barbara Keeley: Training courses are just one aspect of the development opportunities open to civil servants in the Office of the Leader of the House of Commons, and every member of staff discusses their personal development as part of their appraisal process.
Information on courses attended is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, during the past 12 months members of staff participated in training provided by external training organisations and internal training courses which are provided by the Cabinet Office free of charge.
Robert Neill: To ask the Leader of the House if she will issue guidance on the reclamation of legal fees from the Additional Cost Allowance incurred in challenging an Empty Dwelling Management Order. [290421]
Barbara Keeley: The Leader of the House does not issue guidance on the rules relating to the use of allowances.
Hon. Members may seek advice on allowances from the Department of Resources.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Leader of the House for what reasons an impact assessment was not produced to accompany the Draft Legislative Programme for 2009-10. [289807]
Barbara Keeley: The Draft Legislative Programme set out the broad content of 11 bills which the Government are proposing to take through Parliament in the 2009-10 parliamentary session. Three of those bills have recently been introduced (Equality, Child Poverty and Constitutional Reform and Governance) and a further two have been published in draft (Bribery and Flood and Water Management). Each of those five bills is accompanied by full impact assessments. The remaining six bills are new proposals for consultation and, if they are introduced, they will also be accompanied by full impact assessments.
Justine Greening:
To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission how much the Electoral Commission spent on (a) television, (b) radio and (c)
poster advertisements promoting (i) voting and (ii) voter registration in the period up to the (A) 2005 general election and (B) 2009 elections to the European Parliament. [281365]
Mr. Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that it ran public information campaigns for both elections. Each campaign comprised two phases, the first to provide information on registration, the second on voting.
Expenditure on buying advertising for the 2005 general election campaign was as follows (figures rounded to the nearest thousand):
| £ | ||
| Registration phase | Voting phase | |
The Commission spent a further £496,000 on producing advertising for this campaign.
The Commission’s expenditure on buying advertising for the 2009 elections to the European Parliament was as follows (figures rounded to the nearest thousand):
| £ | ||
| Registration phase | Voting phase | |
The Commission spent a further £533,000 on producing advertising for this campaign.
Justine Greening: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission how much the Electoral Commission plans to spend on (a) encouraging voter registration and (b) encouraging voting through (i) television, (ii) radio and (iii) poster advertisements in advance of the next general election. [281366]
Mr. Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that it currently plans to spend approximately £2.2 million on advertising for its campaign in advance of the next general election. It is not yet possible to break down this expenditure in the way requested as this will depend on when an election takes place and on the amount of notice given of an election.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 10W—continued
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission what recent assessment the Electoral Commission has made of voting behaviour at elections. [289569]
Mr. Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that it considers voter turnout and the take up of postal voting at elections as part of its annual election reports. However, it makes no assessment of voter intentions or behaviour in terms of support for political parties.
The Commission will publish its reports on the 2009 European parliamentary elections and local elections in England in October 2009. Reports on previous elections are available on the Commission’s website:
www.electoralcommission.org.uk
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) when he last met representatives of the Northern Ireland Fire Service to discuss attacks on their staff whilst on duty; [289265]
(2) when he last met with senior Ambulance Service officials to discuss attacks on their staff whilst on duty in Northern Ireland. [289266]
Paul Goggins: The PSNI is committed to bringing to justice those who carry out these abhorrent attacks. I have not met with senior officials or representatives from Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service and Northern Ireland Ambulance Service recently. However, the Health Minister for Northern Ireland is aware of my continued concern for the well-being of emergency services staff
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people were arrested during rioting in Ardoyne in North Belfast on 13 July 2009. [289284]
Paul Goggins: As this is an operational matter for the Chief Constable I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Gentleman, and will arrange for a copy of the letter to be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he last met Northern Ireland Executive Ministers to discuss a regional aviation strategy for Northern Ireland. [289264]
Paul Goggins: I have had no requests from Northern Ireland Executive Ministers for such a meeting. Civil aviation is a reserved matter and is the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many bomb devices have been defused by the Army Bomb Disposal Squad in Northern Ireland in the last (a) six and (b) 12 months. [289263]
Paul Goggins: Over the past (a) six and (b) 12 months Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal personnel (EOD) have defused 23 and 56 live bomb devices respectively.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department spent on newspaper advertising by publication in the latest year for which figures are available. [289478]
Mr. Woodward: The finance system of the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) does not break down advertising expenditure in the detail requested therefore these figures could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proportion of his Department's waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289668]
Mr. Woodward: Complete data on what proportion of waste was recycled are not available. However, all buildings are involved in recycling. A cross-departmental recycling scheme on the Stormont estate, which covers a large proportion of Northern Ireland Office staff, shows an average recycling rate from June 2008 to May 2009 of 45 per cent.
We are constantly looking at ways to improve recycling rates, for example by providing recycling bins in each office, and new contracts are being put in place to extend the scope of recycling.
The latest assessment of Government's performance against these targets was published by the Sustainable Development Commission on 12 December 2008:
http://www.sd-commission.org.uk/sdig2008/
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289735]
Mr. Woodward: My right hon. Friend the Minister of State for Northern Ireland (Paul Goggins) has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in the Northern Ireland Office.
The Northern Ireland Office is committed to reforming public services to improve services for the citizen and the Department has established a Business Performance Review Team (BPRT) to implement reforms. BPRT is working closely with colleagues in the centre of Government on this important agenda.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland for which non-departmental public bodies and executive agencies he will continue to have responsibility in circumstances in which responsibility for policing is devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly. [291457]
Mr. Woodward: Those public bodies and their status which will be retained by the NIO at the point of devolution are as set out in the following table. While it is anticipated that parading will not devolve immediately, its future will be determined by the outcome of the Strategic Review of Parades chaired by Lord Ashdown.
| Body | Status |
|
Reviewer of police and military powers under the Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Act 2007 | |
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many external training courses were attended by staff of his Department in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of each course. [289679]
Paul Goggins: The following table details external training courses attended by staff in the Northern Ireland Office in the last 12 months; and the associated cost for each course:
| External training courses attended in 2008-09 | |
| External course | Cost (£) |
|
Impact Assessment—Equality/Diversity in Policy Making and Service Delivery | |
|
Institute of Internal Auditors—MIIA Advanced Case Study Paper 4 | |
|
M2279 Planning, Implementing and Maintaining MS Server Active Directory | |
|
Policy, Management and Research in the Historic House Sector | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 16W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department spent on (a) car hire, (b) air travel, (c) hotels and (d) restaurant meals for (i) Ministers and (ii) staff in his Department in each of the last five years. [289974]
Paul Goggins: The following table shows how much the Northern Ireland Office, including the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland, and excluding its agencies and NDPBs has spent on (a) car hire, (b) air travel (c) hotels and (d) restaurant meals for (i) Ministers and (ii) staff in his Department in each of the last five years.
All spending on official entertainment is made in accordance with HM Treasury’s “Managing Public Money”.
| Thousand | ||||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | ||
| (1) There may also be car hire costs within other expenditure codes including general travel. To extract these costs, and verify that they are related to car hire, would exceed the disproportionate cost threshold of £750. (2) Travel by Ministers and civil servants is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code and the Civil Service Management Code respectively. (3) Up until 2006-07, hotel expenditure was included within night subsistence costs. To extract only hotel costs in these years would exceed the disproportionate cost threshold of £750. (4) Figures not available prior to 2007-08. (5) Expenditure on restaurant meals is included within subsistence or hospitality expenditure. To extract only restaurant meal costs would exceed the disproportionate cost threshold of £750. (6) Figures not available. | ||||||
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what timetable he has set for devolution of responsibility for policing to the Northern Ireland Assembly. [291458]
Paul Goggins: The Government favours early devolution of responsibility for policing and justice, in line with the process set out by the First and Deputy First Minister in November 2008. It welcomes the introduction in the Northern Ireland Assembly of a Bill to establish a new Department of Justice, and looks forward to the Assembly approving a resolution seeking a transfer of powers, as set out in section 4 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998. It is making intensive efforts to clear the remaining obstacles.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have been (a) arrested and (b) sentenced for drug-dealing offences in Northern Ireland in the last 24 months. [289305]
Paul Goggins: In 2007-08 there were 736 persons and in 2008-09 there were 772 persons arrested for drug-dealing offences in Northern Ireland.
Conviction data for 2007 and 2008 are not available. In 2005 there were 149 persons and in 2006 there were 159 persons sentenced for drug-dealing offences in Northern Ireland.
Data for arrests relate to the offence for which a person is initially charged while data for convictions relate to the offence for which a person is tried. Not all persons arrested for drug-dealing are tried for this particular offence; for instance, if there is insufficient evidence persons may be tried for a lesser offence, such as drug possession.
Both data for arrests and convictions are collated on the principal offence rule; only the most serious offence with which an offender is charged is included.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he last met the Northern Ireland Executive Minister for Trade and Industry to discuss the economic downturn in the Province. [289283]
Mr. Woodward: A discussion on the economy formed part of the recent meeting of the Joint Ministerial Committee, attended by the Northern Ireland First and deputy First Ministers, the Prime Minister, the Chief Secretary and myself. I have not recently discussed this issue with the Northern Ireland Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment (Arlene Foster MLA), but she met the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills during his visit to Belfast earlier in the year.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many attacks on Orange Halls were reported in each of the last 12 months in Northern Ireland. [289259]
Paul Goggins: As this is an operational matter for the Chief Constable I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Gentleman, and will arrange for a copy of the letter to be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many Police Service of Northern Ireland stations are planned to be closed in the next (a) 12, (b) 24 and (c) 36 months. [289306]
Paul Goggins: That is an operational matter for the Chief Constable. I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Member, and a copy of his letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many times the Army has provided assistance to the Police Service of Northern Ireland in its policing of the marching season in 2009. [289281]
Paul Goggins: As this is an operational matter for the Chief Constable I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Gentleman, and will arrange for a copy of the letter to be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many police officers were injured by rioters at Rasharkin in County Antrim on 13 July 2009. [289256]
Paul Goggins: As this is an operational matter for the Chief Constable I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Gentleman, and will arrange for a copy of the letter to be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many police officers were injured by rioters at Ardoyne on 13 July 2009. [289272]
Paul Goggins: As this is an operational matter for the Chief Constable I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Gentleman, and will arrange for a copy of the letter to be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many police vehicles on average were available for duty in the night time in the (a) Cookstown, (b) Magherafelt, (c) Antrim and (d) Newtonabbey Council area in the last 12 months. [289260]
Paul Goggins: That is an operational matter for the Chief Constable. I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Member, and a copy of his letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many police vehicles were damaged by rioters at Ardoyne on 13 July 2009. [289278]
Paul Goggins: As this is an operational matter for the Chief Constable I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Gentleman, and will arrange for a copy of the letter to be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many dissident (a) republicans and (b) loyalist prisoners are being held at Maghaberry Prison. [289279]
Paul Goggins: On 22 July, the number of prisoners recorded as being affiliated to dissident republican groups held in Maghaberry prison was 46; there were 112 loyalist prisoners on a similar basis.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many dissident republicans are being held in Magilligan prison. [289280]
Paul Goggins: On 22 July, there were 11 prisoners affiliated to dissident republican groupings held at Magilligan prison.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have moved house following dissident Republican threats during the last 12 months. [289270]
Paul Goggins: As this is an operational matter for the Chief Constable I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Gentleman, and will arrange for a copy of the letter to be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he last met the First Minister of the Northern Ireland Executive to discuss the security situation in the Province. [289282]
Paul Goggins: The Secretary of State meets the First Minister regularly to discuss a range of issues, including the security situation.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many death threats issued by dissident Republicans to (a) former members of the security forces and (b) members of the public resident in the Magherafelt District Council area have been reported in the last 12 months. [289276]
Paul Goggins: As this is an operational matter for the Chief Constable I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Gentleman, and will arrange for a copy of the letter to be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many licences for personal protection weapons have been issued in each of the last three years. [289398]
Paul Goggins: That is an operational matter for the Chief Constable. I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Member, and a copy of his letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many licences for personal protection weapons have been revoked in each of the last three years. [289399]
Paul Goggins: That is an operational matter for the Chief Constable. I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Member, and a copy of his letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many young people were recorded as going missing in Northern Ireland over the last 12 months. [289267]
Paul Goggins: That is an operational matter for the Chief Constable. I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Member, and a copy of his letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Prime Minister what discussions he had with the Chief of the Defence Staff on the announcement he made in Afghanistan on additional personnel, unmanned aerial vehicles, the Warthog vehicle and Ridgeback vehicles. [291572]
The Prime Minister: I have regular meetings and discussions with ministerial colleagues and others including the Chief of the Defence staff on a wide range of subjects. The Chief of the Defence staff accompanied me on my visit to Afghanistan in August.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 21W—continued
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to chapter 1, paragraph 42 of Building Britain’s future, Cm 7654, what steps he plans to take to strengthen the protection given to the records of Cabinet committees. [290368]
The Prime Minister: The details of the proposed changes to legislation as set out in Building Britain’s Future (Cm7654) will be included in the Government’s response to the Review of the 30-Year Rule. The Government response will be published in due course.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Prime Minister whether his Office has received a copy of the report prepared by Bernard Gray on the Ministry of Defence’s equipment programme. [291571]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer to the right hon. Member for Witney (Mr. Cameron) on 15 July 2009, Official Report, column 286.
Sir Menzies Campbell: To ask the Prime Minister when he next plans to visit (a) the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine’s clinical facilities at Selly Oak and (b) the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre, Headley Court. [291718]
The Prime Minister: I have visited members of the armed forces both in the United Kingdom and abroad, and have met injured personnel, in Selly Oak and other places, on these occasions. Visits to injured personnel and to hospitals are undertaken privately.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Prime Minister (1) which proposals announced during his speech to the 2009 Labour Party Conference will require (a) primary and (b) secondary legislation to implement; and if he will make a statement; [292314]
(2) which of the proposals announced during his speech to the 2009 Labour Party Conference have previously been announced by the Government (a) in full and (b) in part, giving the date in each case; and if he will make a statement. [292315]
The Prime Minister: The Government will set out its proposals for legislation in the next session in the Queen’s speech. The speech is a matter of public record.
Kate Hoey: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make representations to the President of Libya on compensation for the victims of Irish Republican Army terrorism in Northern Ireland. [291652]
The Prime Minister: I refer my hon. Friend to the press briefing given by my Spokesman on 7 September. A transcript of this is available on the No. 10 website
http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page20542
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Richmond, Yorks., of 9 September 2009, Official Report, column 1897W, on Libya, if he will place in the Library a copy of his letter to Colonel Gaddafi of Libya, delivered by the then Foreign Office Minister, the hon. Member for Harlow, during his visit to Tripoli in February 2009; and whether he had a meeting with Colonel Gaddafi at the recent UN General Assembly meeting. [292173]
The Prime Minister: A copy of the letter has been placed in the Libraries of the House. The letter covered a range of African policy issues which were appropriate and relevant in the light of Colonel Gaddafi’s election as chair of the African Union. It did not cover the issue of Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi’s release. I did not meet Colonel Gaddafi at the UN General Assembly meeting.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Prime Minister what use has been made, and by whom, of wine held by Ministers as part of the Donated Asset Reserve in the last 12 months. [290117]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the annual list of gifts received by Ministers in an official capacity valued at more than £140 which has been published since 2001. Copies of the lists are available in the Libraries of the House.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Prime Minister with reference to his foreword to the Social Care Green Paper, Cm 7673, in what ways the debate he calls differs from that he called for in his Kings Fund speech of May 2008. [290449]
The Prime Minister: “The case for change—why England needs a new care and support system”, published in May 2008, set out the Government’s intention to reform care and support services and was followed by a six-month period of public engagement to help raise awareness of care and support issues and to gather opinions on the best way to proceed with the reform agenda.
This year’s Green Paper, “Shaping the Future of Care Together”, published in July, is the response to that period of public engagement. It sets out specific options and proposals for a National Care Service, on which debate shall now ensue.
Mr. Dai Davies:
To ask the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library, in respect of the Special Session of the United Nations Security Council on Nuclear Non-proliferation held on 24 September 2009, a copy of (a) his speech to the session, (b) speeches from other heads
of Government referring to the United Kingdom contribution and (c) any papers submitted in support of the Special Session by (i) the United Nations and (ii) national delegations. [292491]
The Prime Minister: A record of the discussions and videos of the speeches given can be found at:
http://www.un.org/webcast/sc.html
A copy of my speech has been placed in the Library of the House.
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Prime Minister if he will place in the Library a copy of the transcript of his question and answer session from New York which was broadcast on Radio Five Live on 23 September 2009. [292332]
The Prime Minister: The interview was conducted for the BBC Simon Mayo show broadcast on Radio 5 live, and can be heard on its website.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department spent on advertising in each newspaper in the latest year for which figures are available. [289480]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office incurred no costs advertising in newspapers during 2008-09.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what percentage of invoices from suppliers his Department paid within 10 days of receipt in June 2009. [288934]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office paid 97.9 per cent. of invoices within 10 days of receipt in June 2009.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many staff there were in (a) his Department’s predecessor in 1997 and (b) his Department on the latest date for which figures are available. [292070]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office was established on 1 July 1999. Therefore, there was no predecessor in 1997.
The latest staffing levels for the Scotland Office are published in the Office’s Annual Report for 2009, a copy of which is available on the Scotland Office website. To view this Report please see the following link:
http://www.scotlandoffice.gov.uk/scotlandoffice/files/SO%202009.pdf
A correction to Annex 9 is also available via the following link:
http://www.scotlandoffice.gov.uk/scotlandoffice/files/SO%202009%20ERRATUM%203.pdf
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what proportion of his Department’s waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289667]
Ann McKechin: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Reading, East (Mr. Wilson) on 31 March 2009, Official Report, column 1029W.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what the executive functions of his Department are. [288632]
Ann McKechin: The functions of the Scotland Office are set out fully in its annual report for 2009 which is published on the Scotland Office website at:
http://www.scotlandoffice.gov.uk/scotlandoffice/10797.135.html
The principal role of the Scotland Office is to oversee the devolution settlement and make it work effectively for the people of Scotland and the rest of the United Kingdom.
Mr. MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009, Official Report, column 381W, on departmental publications, whether his Department will prepare and publish a background paper on (a) the effects on the Western Isles economy of the closure of the Hebrides Range and (b) the effects of fuel duty on rural hauliers and motorists in Scotland. [291720]
Ann McKechin: No. There is no plan to close the Hebrides Range; and fuel duty is a matter for the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment. [288935]
Mr. Jim Murphy: I visited Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment.
Mr. Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what schemes the Government have made available to assist businesses in Wales during the economic downturn. [288901]
Mr. Hain:
The UK Government have launched a number of initiatives designed to help UK businesses during the current economic downturn. These include the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme, Capital for Enterprise Fund and the highly successful HMRC Time to Pay, which are all supporting Welsh businesses. So
far, the HMRC has reached over 6,780 agreements with businesses in Wales, to spread more than £100 million in businesses taxes. More information on these schemes can be obtained from the BIS, Wales Office and Welsh Assembly Government websites.
The European Investment Bank has also approved nearly £475 million of loans to small and medium sized enterprises across the UK.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much his Department spent on advertising in each newspaper in the latest year for which figures are available. [289482]
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what percentage of invoices from its suppliers his Department paid within 10 days of receipt in June 2009. [288698]
Mr. Hain: In June 2009 my Department paid 87 per cent. of invoices within 10 days of receipt.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many staff there were in (a) his Department's predecessor in 1997 and (b) his Department on the latest date for which figures are available. [292073]
Mr. Hain: The Wales Office was established in May 1999. My office currently employs 58 members of staff.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much his Department spent on hire vehicles in each of the last five financial years. [291605]
Mr. Hain: In the last five financial years, my Department’s expenditure for car hire is broken down as:
| Spend on car hire (£) | ||
| Ministers | Staff | |
The increase in car hire for Ministers in 2008-09 came about because in previous years the Secretary of State’s car was provided by the Northern Ireland Office and then the Department of Work and Pensions when he held dual responsibilities.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much his Department spent on Royal Mail services in each of the last two years. [288744]
Mr. Hain: In the last two years my Department has spent the following using the services of Royal Mail:
| £ | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 26W—continued
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what companies or organisations provided (a) goods and (b) services to his Department in 2008-09; and what the cost to the public purse was in each case. [289013]
Mr. Hain: To provide the information the hon. Lady has requested would incur disproportionate cost.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289732]
Mr. Hain: I have asked the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State to take on the role as the Wales Office's Value for Money Minister. Both he and I take an active role in ensuring that the Wales Office delivers value for money in all its expenditure. We are not a service delivery Department however and thus do not have a public sector reform team.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what proportion of his Department’s waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289670]
Mr. Hain: The last period for which figures are available covers January to March 2009. During this period, the Wales Office recycled 84 per cent. of its waste.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much his Department spent on (a) car hire, (b) train travel, (c) air travel, (d) hotels and (e) restaurant meals for (i) Ministers and (ii) staff in his Department in each of the last five years. [289979]
Mr. Hain: In the last five financial years, my Department’s expenditure for car hire, train travel and air travel is broken down as:
| Spend (£) | |||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
The increase in car hire for Ministers in part of 2007-08 and 2008-09 came about because in previous years the Secretary of State’s car was provided by the Northern Ireland Office and then the Department of Work and Pensions when he held dual responsibilities. Restaurant meals and hotel costs are not kept separately and could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost.
Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what guidance his Department has issued on the status of proposed legislative competence orders which have not completed the process of Parliamentary approval at the point of a dissolution of Parliament; and if he will make a statement. [290496]
Mr. Hain: Legislative Competence Orders will be treated in the same way as any other form of legislation passing through the Palace of Westminster following the dissolution of Parliament.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many copies of the Budget 2009 Report the Government Equalities Office ordered; and what the cost was of that order. [290266]
Michael Jabez Foster: The Government Equalities Office has not purchased any copies of the Budget 2009 report
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what percentage of employees in the Government Equalities Office (a) are on a flexible working contract, (b) are on a job share employment contract and (c) work from home for more than four hours a week. [287090]
Michael Jabez Foster: The Government Equalities Office (GEO) operates a flexible working policy which is available to all staff. The GEO currently does not have any staff on job share contracts. Staff are allowed to work from home, subject to line management agreement based on business need, however central records on the amount of time worked from home are not held.
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what procedures apply to the grant of permission for the use of the (a) resources and (b) offices of the Equality and Human Rights Commission activities related to a private sector organisation. [290430]
Maria Eagle: Permission to use the resources and offices of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) would not normally be granted for activities relating to private sector organisations.
Exceptionally the EHRC approved the use of their offices for a private sector organisation; however this was without the approval of the Government Equalities Office. The use of the EHRC offices for private sector organisation meetings has since ceased.
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how much funding the Equality and Human Rights Commission has given to Traveller groups; on what dates; and for what purposes. [288252]
Maria Eagle: The following tables contain a full list of Traveller-related work, totalling £344,734, funded under the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s Interim Grants Programme, which ran from 1 April 2008-31 March 2009.
| Funding awarded to Traveller groups under the 2008-09 Interim Grants Programme | |||
| Organisation | Outcome | Region/country | Amount (£) |
|
Gypsy/Travel Education and Information Project North East (GTEIP) | |||
| Other funding awarded to deliver traveller-related work under the 2008-09 Interim Grants Programme | |||
| Organisation | Outcome | Region/country | Amount (£) |
|
Pakistan Community Association and Multicultural Advice Centre | |||
|
1. To facilitate access to public services for Migrant Workers informing them of services. | |||
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality when the annual statements of accounts of the Equality and Human Rights Commission were signed off; and what the reason was for the time taken to sign them off. [288253]
Maria Eagle: The accounts were laid on Monday 20 July. The preparation of the first set of accounts for the Commission was a major undertaking, bringing together the assets and liabilities of the legacy commissions and establishing common standards for measurement and evaluation which needed to be agreed with NAO.
Accounts for the Disability Rights Commission and the Commission for Racial Equality were only laid in May and June 2009 respectively. Information from those accounts has had to be consolidated with the Equality and Human Rights Commission's own figures and this has taken time.
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what payments the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has made to the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) since the EHRC's establishment; for what purposes and projects those payments were made; and whether it has commissioned the IPPR to undertake further work in the future. [288265]
Maria Eagle: The Equality and Human Rights Commission has made the following payments totalling £19,075 to the IPPR:
| Payments to Institute of Public Policy Research | ||
| Date | Purpose | Payment (£) |
|
Receipt of interim report on social housing allocation and immigrant communities. | ||
|
Receipt of draft final report on social housing allocation and immigrant communities | ||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 31W—continued
The Commission has commissioned research to examine the allocation of social housing in England. The study is set in the context of increased international immigration to the UK and a reduction in social housing stock.
The Commission currently has no plans to undertake further work with the IPPR.
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many employment disputes involving staff of the Equality and Human Rights Commission have been taken to an employment tribunal. [288269]
Maria Eagle: To date, 15 employment disputes involving staff of the Equality and Human Rights Commission have been taken to an employment tribunal.
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many staff who were made redundant by the Commission for Racial Equality and given redundancy payments have subsequently been (a) employed and (b) hired as consultants by the Equality and Human Rights Commission. [288267]
Maria Eagle: 72 Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) staff received redundancy payments via the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme. The CRE may have made direct payments to staff over retirement age. The Equality and Human Rights Commission subsequently re-engaged seven former employees of the CRE on short-term consultancy contracts. More information about the re-engaged staff can be found in the EHRC annual report and accounts 2006-08.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many posts for full-time equivalent staff the Equality and Human Rights Commission has approval from HM Treasury to appoint; and how many such posts are unfilled. [290453]
Maria Eagle: The Equality and Human Rights Commission has approval to appoint 525 posts for full-time equivalent staff. There are no vacancies at present.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many flags the Government Equalities Office (a) owns and (b) maintains; and what the cost of maintaining them was in the last 12 months. [290265]
Michael Jabez Foster: The Government Equalities Office does not own or maintain any flags.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how much the Government Equalities Office has spent on flowers in each year since its establishment. [290385]
Michael Jabez Foster: Since its creation on the 12 October 2007, the Government Equalities Office has not spent any money on flowers.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many and what proportion of staff working in the Government Equalities Office are (a) male, (b) female and (c) from an ethnic minority. [290225]
Michael Jabez Foster: The Government Equalities Office employs 102 staff of which 68 are female (67 per cent.) and 34 are male (33 per cent.). 20 (19 per cent.) staff are from an ethnic minority.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many official functions has she attended to promote the proposals contained in Building Britain's future, Cm 7654. [290469]
Michael Jabez Foster: The Minister for Women has attended one official function for Building Britain's Future which took place on 27 July 2009 in Hull.
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what assessment the Equality and Human Rights Commission made of the legality of giving priority to local residents in the social housing allocation policies. [288264]
Maria Eagle: The Equality and Human Rights Commission recently undertook a research project on allocation of social housing. This project did not undertake any assessment of current social housing allocation policies.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how much her Department plans to spend on promoting International Women's Day 2010. [290382]
Maria Eagle: The GEO has not finalised the plans for promoting International Women's Day 2010 as yet, therefore, we cannot provide a figure.
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality when she plans to reply to the letter to her of 29 May 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Ms K Rowley. [287816]
Michael Jabez Foster: My hon. Friend the Solicitor-General (Vera Baird) wrote to the right hon. Member on the 16 July 2009.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality whether she plans to bring forward legislative proposals to amend public procurement legislation and guidance in order to achieve the Government's policy objectives on equality. [289078]
Michael Jabez Foster: There are no plans to amend procurement legislation. The Equality Bill contains a Regulation making power to introduce specific duties via secondary legislation, which will require contracting authorities to use public procurement to promote equality wherever possible. The specific duties will be formulated in a way that is compatible with procurement legislation, so there should be no need to amend either the Public Contract Regulations 2006, or the Utilities Contract Regulations 2006.
The Government Equality Office is working closely with both the Equality and Human Rights Commission and the Office of Government Commerce with regard to procurement related guidance. The EHRC are assessing the requirements for guidance in relation to the Equality Bill and the Office of Government Commerce are also considering what may be required in relation to procurement, including the provision of a new non-legislative toolkit.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many refuges for victims of domestic violence she has visited on official business in the last 12 months. [290477]
Maria Eagle: The Minster for Women and Equality visited The Poppy Project, part of Eaves, a London-based charity that provides housing and support to trafficked women, in September 2008. In April 2009 she visited a Domestic Violence Victims Support Unit in Ghana.
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what research the Equality and Human Rights Commission has undertaken into Travellers. [288262]
Maria Eagle: The Equality and Human Rights Commission has undertaken the following research:
(i) A review of the inequalities experienced by Gypsy and Traveller communities across the Commission’s mandate and public services, building on the race focus of Common Ground published in 2006 by the Commission for Racial Equality.
(ii) An assessment of local authorities’ progress in meeting the accommodation needs of Gypsy and Traveller communities in England.
Both pieces of research were published in March 2009 alongside the Commission’s report, “Gypsies and Travellers: Simple solutions for living together”, which highlights and promotes best practice.
Similar research for Scotland will follow in the autumn.
Mr. Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many staff from his Department are based in the provincial reconstruction team base in Lashkar Gar; what proportion of such staff (a) have left the perimeter of the base by road during their tour and (b) are performing roles which could be undertaken at Camp Bastion; and if he will make a statement. [291095]
Chris Bryant: I refer the hon. Member to the response given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development on 14 September 2009, Official Report, columns 2108-09W.
Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the US administration on the return of Shaker Aamer to the UK. [289701]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: We have sought the release and return of Shaker Aamer, a Saudi national formerly lawfully resident in the UK, from Guantanamo Bay since August 2007. The US has not so far agreed to his release and return to the UK in the light of security concerns in his case.
We have made clear to both the current and previous US Administrations that our request for Mr. Aamer’s release and return to the UK stands. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has reiterated this position to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Other Ministers and senior officials across Government have raised Mr. Aamer’s case with their counterparts in the US State Department, the Department of Defence, the Department of Justice and the National Security Council.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government has made to the UN regarding the involvement of the government of Afghanistan in local state elections in that country. [289492]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: Over the past two years, the UK has been working alongside Afghanistan’s Independent Election Commission (IEC), the UN Assistance Mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA), the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the wider donor community to prepare the 2009-10 Afghan elections. This includes preparations for the Provincial Council elections, which will be held at the same time as the presidential elections on 20 August 2009.
The Afghan Government, with the support of the international community, has a vital role to play in both ensuring adequate security for the elections and that the IEC is a functioning body, capable of ensuring effective organisation. The 2009 elections will be the first Afghan-led elections since the 1970s.
UNAMA, through the UNDP, is co-ordinating international support through the ELECT project—to which the UK has given £16.5 million. ELECT aims to
build up the capacity of the IEC to run the elections and to create a more cohesive and informed electoral process with as wide participation as possible. We work closely with the UN in Afghanistan and New York on preparations and have frequently played the lead role in raising and resolving issues of concern with the UN, the Afghan Government and international donors.
International funding, both through ELECT and other projects, is supporting media exposure for candidates and civic education for voters, to explain the electoral process and to encourage them to vote. We are following the UN and IEC preparations closely, holding UNDP to account against the project’s agreed outputs and pressing for additional action where necessary.
http://www.undp.org.af/WhoWeAre/UNDPinAfghanistan/Projects/dcse/prj_elect.htm
Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Head of his Department's Middle East and North Africa Department has plans to visit the Saharawi refugee camp in Algeria. [290518]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Director of Middle East and North Africa at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has no plans to visit the Saharawi refugee camp in Algeria. However, officials from our embassy in Algiers do make periodic visits to Tindouf, with the last such visit in March of this year.
Lembit Öpik: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Bangladeshi government on reports of violations of the human rights of the Jumma tribes in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. [291594]
Chris Bryant: The Government support the work of the Chittagong Hill Tract Commission in promoting respect for democracy, land rights and development in the Chittagong Hill Tracts in Bangladesh. Officials from our high commission in Dhaka met with the deputy commissioner in Rangamati in the Chittagong Hill Tracts in March 2009 to stress the importance of both implementation of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord and respect for the human rights of the communities in the region. In August 2009, our high commissioner met members of the Chittagong Hill Tract Commission when they visited Bangladesh. Our high commission has offered funding in support of the commission’s important work to address the rights of the indigenous peoples.
Mr. Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he has taken to enable his Department to react more quickly to reports of the torture of British nationals abroad since 2004. [291422]
David Miliband:
Ensuring the welfare of British nationals detained abroad is one of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO)'s highest priorities. Consular staff are
given training and guidance in how to deal with distressed British nationals overseas, including in cases where allegations of mistreatment have been made. Consular staff are specifically trained on what action to take in response to any allegation of mistreatment. They can also draw on professional support, including from specialist legal and human rights advisers in the FCO.
However, this training and guidance is continually evolving and improving. Guidance is now clearer on the paramount importance and urgency of these cases, on who in London and overseas needs to be informed of allegations of mistreatment when these are made to a consular official, and on the actions to be taken to follow up such allegations.
Our current guidance includes the identification of possible signs of torture and mistreatment, as well as the procedures to be adopted in such circumstances. The first step when a British national is detained overseas is to seek and secure access by our consular staff. Our staff are instructed to ask our nationals whether they have suffered abuse or mistreatment, and to look out for signs of mistreatment even where an individual does not raise it. They are required to follow up all reports of mistreatment whether they come from the individual themselves, from their friends, family or representatives, or from other sources. What form this follow up action will take will depend on the individual circumstances of the case. Most obviously, we can raise our concerns with the relevant authorities. Whatever action we take however, the objective remains the same: to end the mistreatment, and have the incident investigated and the perpetrators of any abuse brought to justice.
In many countries we also raise more general concerns around the mistreatment and abuse of detainees as part of our wider human rights dialogue.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to the government of China on the arrest and treatment of (a) Falun Gong practitioners held in re-education through labour camps and (b) other Falun Gong practitioners. [289239]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: We last raised our concerns about Falun Gong practitioners at the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue on 12-13 January 2009. We asked how many re-education through labour (RTL) detainees there were and what proportion were Falun Gong. The Chinese responded saying that reforms of the system of RTL were taking place. We will continue to raise this at every appropriate opportunity.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 36W—continued
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the detention of Mr Liu Xiaobo by the Chinese authorities; what representations he has made to his Chinese counterpart on the case; and if he will make a statement. [289286]
Mr. Ivan Lewis:
The EU Presidency issued a Declaration on 26 June 2009 expressing the EU’s deep concern about the detention of Liu Xiaobo. The EU called for the end of the prosecution of Liu Xiaobo and his
immediate release, referring to the Chinese Constitution’s guarantee on the right of freedom of expression and in accordance with provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which China signed in 1998 (but has yet to ratify).
We raised the case of Liu Xiaobo at the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue on 12-13 January 2009. The Chinese Delegation responded by saying his case was being dealt with by the Chinese courts. We also worked closely with our European partners to ensure this case was raised at the EU-China Human Rights Dialogue held on 14 May 2009 in Prague.
We will continue to raise this issue at every appropriate opportunity.
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the location and detention of General Laurent Nkunda. [292119]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Congolese and Rwandan authorities have stated that they are still in discussions on how to deal with Laurent Nkunda. We understand that Nkunda remains under house arrest in Rwanda.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department spent on newspaper advertising carried in each newspaper in the most recent year for which figures are available. [289507]
Chris Bryant: Human Resources Directorate in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) have spent the following amounts on recruitment advertising during 2008-09.
| Newspaper | Spend (£) |
Consular Directorate in the FCO have spent the following amounts on advertising during 2008-09 as part of its ongoing Travel Safety campaign for British Nationals.
| Newspaper | Spend (£) |
It is possible that other parts of the FCO have incurred expenditure on newspaper advertising. However, this information is not held centrally, and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the annual cost of (a) maintaining and (b) updating the Twitter accounts (i) foreignoffice, (ii) britishabroad and (iii) fcocareers; and how many staff of his Department are responsible for updating each account. [292049]
Chris Bryant: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) maintains a presence on Twitter as part of our wider digital communications strategy. Twitter is a free tool that allows us to communicate the work of the FCO to a global audience who might not normally visit our websites, and at minimal cost.
There is no financial cost to setting up or hosting FCO Twitter accounts. FCO Twitter accounts are updated by FCO staff as part of their existing communications responsibilities. We estimate that @foreignoffice and @britishabroad each takes approximately 15-30 minutes a day to update with an additional 15-30 minutes to assess the uptake of our messages and monitor relevant traffic on other channels. The account @fcocareers takes minimal resource to update since most of its content is automatically generated.
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with reference to the answer of 26 November 2008, Official Report, column 1753-54W, on departmental marketing, what expenditure his Department incurred in departmental branding activity in 2008-09. [290216]
Chris Bryant: During the 2008-09 financial year, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) had no staff specifically employed on branding activity, although some parts of the FCO (for example Consular Directorate) undertake in-house branding activity on a continuing basis as part of their promotional campaigns.
In addition, the Communication Directorate established a three-person team to review, consolidate and simplify all aspects of the FCO's corporate identity. This team engaged the services of a branding consultant, through the Central Office of Information under normal Government procurement rules, at a cost of £80,000 in the financial year. This work has resulted in new FCO corporate identity guidelines, which will enable the FCO in the UK and in posts around the world to save money by deploying standardised designs and systems.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with reference to the answer of 11 March 2008, Official Report, columns 326-27W, on departmental official hospitality, how much his Department spent on entertaining in 2008-09. [290151]
Chris Bryant: In 2008-09 the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) spent £7,951,558 on a wide range of activities from entertaining individuals, to dinner receptions for Ministers and high level visitors, and other events to establish and cultivate contacts. All are undertaken in pursuit of FCO objectives, both in the UK and in our posts overseas.
This figure is made up of £7,544,672 in direct entertainment expenditure, which includes the costs of food, drink and sundries when official contacts are entertained either at an officer's home, mission residences or at an external venue, and £406,886 of Government hospitality expenditure, which is official hospitality at ministerial level across Whitehall.
All entertainment expenditure, including that on hospitality, is incurred in accordance with the principles of Managing Public Money and HM Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289740]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: My hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State (Chris Bryant) has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). The FCO is committed to improving services and making efficiencies and is working closely with colleagues in the centre of Government on this important agenda.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what data his Department holds on the level of diversity in its recruitment of employees in each of the last three years. [290506]
Chris Bryant: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office holds the following data on the level of diversity in its recruitment of employees, into both the senior management structure and the delegated grades, in the last three financial years:
| FY 2007-08 | FY 2008-09 | FY 2009-101 | |
| Percentage | |||
| (1) Data for financial year (FY) 2009-10 cover campaigns completed as of end of August 2009. | |||
Further diversity statistics of UK-based staff can be found in the following publication:
http://www.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/pdf/4103709/5476465/departmental-report/dept-report-vol2-2
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proportion of his Department’s waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289673]
Chris Bryant: During the latest period, 2008-09, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office recycled 59 per cent. of its waste on its UK estate. This compares to a figure of 48 per cent. for 2007-08.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many external training courses were attended by staff of his Department in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of each course. [289692]
Chris Bryant: Human resources directorate sponsors three significant courses, which sit outside of the main Foreign and Commonwealth Office training framework. These are:
Programme timings May 2008-May 2009
Approximately 130 persons enrolled
£3,000 cost per person
£390,000 approx total cost
56 persons enrolled
A part of the Government Pathfinder Scheme which is fully funded by the Learning and Skills Council.
Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development—HR related qualifications/yearly subscriptions:
Number not centrally recorded.
Other departments in London and posts overseas are likely to sponsor other external courses. However records are not held centrally so we cannot provide this information without incurring disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department spent on (a) car hire, (b) train travel, (c) air travel, (d) hotels and (e) restaurant meals for (i) Ministers and (ii) staff in his Department in each of the last five years. [289994]
Chris Bryant: This information is not held centrally and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Travel by Ministers and civil servants is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code and the Civil Service Management Code respectively, and all spending on official entertainment is made in accordance with the principles set out in Managing Public Money.
I also refer the hon. Member to the Cabinet Office annual list of overseas travel over £500 undertaken by Ministers. The 2008-09 list was published on 16 July 2009 and can be viewed at:
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/propriety_and_ethics/ministers/travel_gifts.aspx
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on allegations of persecution of members of the Methodist Church in Fiji; and if he will make a statement. [292162]
Chris Bryant: I remain extremely concerned over the human rights situation in Fiji, particularly since the abrogation of the constitution in April this year. Through our high commission in Suva, among other sources, we continue to watch events closely. These include the cancellation of the Methodist Church annual meeting in July and the arrest and detention of church leaders.
We have made our concerns at these and other developments clear to the military regime in Fiji, and have drawn them to the attention of international partners, including the EU. Fiji was suspended from the Commonwealth on 1 September following meetings of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group, of which the UK is a member. The UK most recently raised its concerns on human rights in Fiji in a statement to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva in September.
Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reasons the Government provided to the European Court of Justice in support of its application for leave to join Gibraltar in its action against Spain in respect of territorial waters; and if he will make a statement. [291556]
Chris Bryant: On 7 August 2009 the Government requested permission from the Court of First Instance to intervene in support of the Government of Gibraltar (GoG) against the European Commission seeking annulment of Commission Decision 2009/95/EC in so far as it includes a Site of Community Interest (SCI) proposed by Spain which overlaps with British Gibraltar Territorial Waters (BGTW) (case T-176/09). It should be noted that at this stage, in requesting permission from the court to intervene, we have not submitted our substantive written intervention. We are currently awaiting a response from the court to our request.
The UK is the only state competent to include a site within BGTW on a list of SCIs submitted to the Commission. We have placed on record that the UK does not recognise the validity of the Spanish listing.
Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for what reasons the Government did not apply to join Gibraltar's action in the European Court of Justice regarding Spain's claim to Gibraltar's territorial waters until after the deadline for such applications; and if he will make a statement. [291637]
12 Oct 2009 : Column 41W—continued
Chris Bryant:
At the end of 2008 Spain put forward a “Site of Community Importance” (SCI) under the habitats directive which encompasses British Gibraltar Territorial Waters (BGTW). As the Commission only consulted each state bilaterally on the sites it put forward, the UK discussed only our own proposed sites (including two in Gibraltar) with the Commission. We therefore discovered
the existence of the Spanish site in BGTW only after the complete list of sites across the EU was published in February 2009.
The Government have however, within the time allowed, requested permission to intervene in support of the Government of Gibraltar legal case against the European Commission relating to a Site of Community Interest (SCI) proposed by Spain which overlaps with British Gibraltar Territorial Waters (BGTW) (case T-176/09). We await a response from the court to our request.
The case does not concern a Spanish claim to BGTW. In fact the case involves an Article 230 application before the Court of First Instance by the Government of Gibraltar for annulment of Commission Decision 2009/95/EC, made under the habitats directive, to the extent that the listing of the Spanish SCI, Estrecho Oriental, includes British Gibraltar Territorial Waters (BGTW) and an area of the high seas beyond BGTW.
Mr. Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to the government of Iran on the detention of Iranian Bahai leaders in Evin prison in Tehran. [290174]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: We are extremely concerned that the seven leading members of the Iranian Bahá’i community remain in detention, following their arrest in early 2008. Alongside our EU partners we have called repeatedly for the Iranian government to release the group and to allow independent observation of the judicial proceedings.
In a statement to mark the one year anniversary of their arrest, my hon. Friend, the then Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, (Bill Rammell), issued a press statement on 14 May 2009 calling for their release, and on 25 May 2009, the EU reiterated this message in a declaration, urging the Iranian government to reconsider the accusations against the leaders and to allow independent observation of the judicial proceedings.
I met with representatives of the UK National Spiritual Association of the Bahá’is on 2 July 2009, assuring them of our ongoing support, and my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister reinforced this message of support in a private meeting with the group on 15 July 2009.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will discuss with his EU counterparts extending economic sanctions against Iran to include exported refined oil products. [291548]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The E3+3 invited Iran to re-enter talks about its nuclear programme in April 2009. Iran has yet to provide a constructive response on the issues of concern, but has now agreed to meet E3+3 officials on 1 October 2009.
Iran must take urgent positive steps to reassure the international community that its nuclear programme is for exclusively peaceful purposes, starting at the meeting on 1 October. Should Iran fail to do so, we will have no
option but to pursue further sanctions. We are considering the options available and will discuss them with EU partners when necessary.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the detention of 36 Camp Ashraf residents without charge or trial by Iraqi forces; and if he will make a statement. [292163]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Iraqi Government have given assurances that no Camp Ashraf residents would be forcibly transferred to a country where they have reason to fear persecution, or where substantial grounds exist to believe they would be tortured.
All 36 arrested on 28 July 2009 were released on 7 October 2009 and have returned to Camp Ashraf. The Iraqi authorities have said they intend to resettle all 36 to other countries once suitable arrangements are in place. They had been detained under a combination of charges related to the violence at the camp on 28 July 2009 and immigration violations.
Our ambassador in Baghdad met the Iraqi Human Rights Minister on 6 October 2009 to discuss the detention of the 36. He was briefed on the efforts underway to make arrangements for their release.
During their detention our embassy in Baghdad was in regular contact with the Iraqi authorities, the UN Assistance Mission in Iraq and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). The UN confirmed that they have been held in acceptable local conditions. Food and water was available throughout, but the 36 men chose to follow a hunger strike in protest at their detention. Medical care was provided during their detention. The 36 had regular access to the ICRC.
Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will take steps to introduce legislation to ensure that companies operating out of illegal Israeli settlements cannot trade in the United Kingdom. [289631]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: We are clear that settlement construction is a violation of international law and so we will continue to press the Israeli Government immediately to freeze all settlement activity. But we have no plans to introduce legislation on the subject.
Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent steps he has taken to ensure that Government departments and agencies do not make purchases from illegal Israeli settlements. [289632]
Mr. Ivan Lewis:
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) does not have explicit policy precluding the purchase of goods emanating from the settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. However, in practice the FCO in London and FCO posts seek to avoid purchase of goods from settlements. A recent example of this is when our Embassy in Tel Aviv stopped negotiations to lease premises in Africa-Israel’s Kirya Tower when the company was unable to give
assurances that it and its subsidiaries were not involved in settlement construction or support for settler organisations.
Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with HM Treasury on the legality of collecting customs duties on exports from illegal Israeli settlements. [289633]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: Our officials continue to have discussions with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), regarding the import of goods from Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs), especially consignments originating from illegal Israeli settlements.
Products from Israeli settlements in the OPTs are not prohibited by the law in the UK. However, in accordance with the EU-Israel Association Agreement, HMRC continue to ensure that all consignments originating from illegal Israeli settlements do not benefit from preferential EU tariff rates.
Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to discourage UK nationals from buying properties in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. [289634]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The UK’s position has been consistently robust—settlements are illegal, they are clear violation of international law. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s travel advice clearly outlines the UK position and that potential purchasers should be aware that a future peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians, or between Israel and Syria, could have consequences for property purchased in these settlements.
Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent requests he has made to other Ministers on facilitation of cooperation and training with the government of Libya; and if he will make a statement. [292160]
Chris Bryant: The former Prime Minister Tony Blair visited Libya in March 2004 and May 2007 and agreed to co-operate with Libya in the fields of education and culture, archaeology, health, judicial co-operation and training, economic and financial development, defence, counter terrorism, police co-operation and training, tourism, travel visas, migration, development and the environment in Africa. In addition we also cooperate with Libya on Migration, Human Rights, Regional Security and undertake capacity building programmes such as police training and prison reform.
No specific measures of cooperation have been separately authorised by my right hon. Friends the Prime Minister or the Foreign Secretary in the past 12 months.
Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what measures of co-operation in training he has authorised in respect of Libya in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [292161]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The former Prime Minister Tony Blair visited Libya in March 2004 and May 2007 and agreed to co-operate with Libya in the fields of education and culture, archaeology, health, judicial co-operation and training, economic and financial development, defence, counter-terrorism, police co-operation and training, tourism, travel visas, migration, development and the environment in Africa. In addition, we also co-operate with Libya on migration, human rights, regional security and undertake capacity building programmes such as police training and prison reform.
No specific measures of co-operation have been separately authorised by my right hon. Friends the Prime Minister or the Foreign Secretary in the past 12 months.
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contacts his Department’s officials have had with (a) Linda Carty and (b) her legal team on her sentence. [292121]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: Since we became aware of Ms Carty’s case in 2002 we have maintained regular contact with her and her legal team. Consular staff keep in touch with her by letter and telephone and make prison visits. We last spoke to Ms Carty on 9 September 2009 and visited on 25 June 2009.
Consular staff maintain regular contact with Ms Carty’s US legal representatives, whom we last met on 29 September 2009, and with the UK non-governmental organisation Reprieve, with whom we work closely on death penalty cases. We have also submitted two Amicus Curie briefs to the US courts in relation to the case, the first in May 2006 and the second on 4 May 2009.
The Government are strongly opposed to the death penalty. We express our opposition to its use on British nationals at whatever stage and level is judged appropriate from the moment when the imposition of a death sentence becomes a possibility. We have made a number of representations to the US Government on this case concerning our view on the death penalty, and will continue to do so.
Dr. Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the US administration on progress towards a two-state solution for the Israeli and Palestinian peoples. [290060]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary discussed the Middle East Peace Process in a telephone conversation with Senator Mitchell on 7 September 2009. We, along with our international allies, will continue to pursue vigorously a comprehensive peace based on a two-state solution, involving a viable Palestinian state living alongside Israel in peace and security.
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions his Department has had with the Government of Niger on that country’s constitution relating to presidential term limits. [292120]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The UK remains concerned about recent developments in Niger that threaten the democratisation process across the region. We are working with EU partners on how we can best contribute to restoring democracy and ensuring stability in Niger, and continue to lobby the regional body, the Economic Community of Western African States, which is leading the search for a peaceful solution, to agree a way forward, working with the African Union and the UN.
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in North Korea, with particular reference to the repatriation of North Korean refugees by China; and if he will make a statement. [289287]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: As set out in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s (FCO) Annual Human Rights Report, the Government continues to be deeply concerned by the reports of serious, widespread, and systematic human rights violations in North Korea. We raise these issues with the North Korean authorities at every appropriate opportunity. However, the North Korean government refuses to engage. Our ambassador in Pyongyang raised our concerns with the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs and Speaker of the North Korean parliament in February 2009 during the visit to North Korea by Lord Alton and Baroness Cox. He emphasised the importance of dialogue on human rights and urged North Korea to accept a visit by the UN Special Rapporteur.
The Government have also continued to look for opportunities to engage on the issue of North Korean refugees. We urge China to observe its obligations under the 1951 convention on the status of refugees and to allow the UN High Commissioner for Refugees access to the China-Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) border region. This subject was raised with the Chinese at the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue in January 2009. We urged China not to return those people crossing the border from DPRK to China. At our request, the issue of North Korean refugees was included in the UN Human Rights Council resolution on DPRK which was agreed on at the 10(th) session of the Human Rights Council which was concluded on 27 March 2009.
Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to the Israeli government on the expansion of settlements in the Occupied Golan Heights. [289625]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The UK’s position is clear on Israeli settlements in occupied territory: they are illegal, a clear violation of international law and an impediment to the peace process. We have made this frequently clear to Israeli government and will continue to do so.
Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Israeli government on its decision to expand the settlement east of Jerusalem at Ma'ale Adumim. [289861]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The UK's position is clear: all settlements in the Occupied Palestinian territories, including the west bank and east Jerusalem, are a clear violation of international law. This includes the settlement of Ma'ale Adumim.
We will continue to press Israel to adhere to its 2003 Road Map commitments, including to freeze immediately all settlement activity and remove all outposts erected since 2001. We regard a freeze on the expansion of settlements as a key element in restarting peace talks.
Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Israeli government on the threatened evictions of Palestinians from their homes in East Jerusalem. [289862]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: We remain concerned by the continued eviction of Palestinian families in East Jerusalem. The UK has raised its concerns with the Israeli Government and calls on Israel to suspend these eviction notices immediately.
We fully support the action the EU presidency has taken to do likewise and their 21 July 2009 statement on the issue.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will take steps to reduce the number of pets abandoned by UK expatriates returning to the UK. [291562]
Chris Bryant: While the abandonment of domestic animals by UK expatriates on their return is sadly not unheard of, it is difficult to see what action my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary could take to prevent it and consequently there are no plans to take steps to reduce the number of pets abandoned by UK expatriates returning to the UK.
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the domestic blasphemy laws on human rights in Pakistan. [292310]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The UK continues to have concerns about the effect of blasphemy laws on human rights in Pakistan.
Together with our EU partners, the UK has encouraged the Government of Pakistan to repeal or amend its blasphemy laws to reduce the widespread misuse of this legislation to discriminate against minority groups. In December 2008, the EU called upon the Government of Pakistan to promote tolerance, to effectively protect freedom of belief and freedom of expression and to reform discriminatory legislation such as the blasphemy laws. In August 2009, the EU also raised the attacks on Christians in Gojra with the Pakistan Foreign Minister.
We continue to encourage Pakistan to fulfil its commitments under the UN Human Rights Council. During the last Universal Periodic Review in May 2008, we secured a commitment from the Government of Pakistan that checks would be introduced to regulate investigations into allegations of blasphemy that affect minority groups.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 47W—continued
Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government has made to the government of Pakistan on the attacks on Christians (a) in Korian and Gojra and (b) elsewhere in Pakistan; what response has been received; and if he will make a statement. [292398]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The UK supports freedom of religion and condemns any persecution on grounds of faith or religious belief. Incidents such as the attacks on Gojra and Korian are examples of the discrimination faced by religious minorities in Pakistan.
The UK regularly raises human rights concerns both bilaterally with the Government of Pakistan and together with our EU partners. The latest attacks on the Christian community have been strongly condemned by both the President and Prime Minister of Pakistan. And the Government of Pakistan has announced a package of compensation for those affected by the attacks.
Following the attacks, our high commissioner in Islamabad raised our concerns about the attack in Gojra with the Chief Minister of Punjab, Shahbaz Sharif. Mr. Sharif assured the high commissioner that the perpetrators would be brought to justice and that he had instructed the Lahore High Court to conduct an inquiry.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions his Department has had with the Serbian government on (a) the death of Petar Sutovic in Belgrade in 2004 and (b) the subsequent removal of his organs. [292147]
Chris Bryant: We have raised various aspects of the investigation into Petar Sutovic’s death with the Serbian Government at the family’s request and continue to make requests for information on behalf of the Walthamstow Coroner’s Office which is conducting a second inquiry into Petar’s death. We requested information from the Serbian Government regarding the removal of organs and we await a reply.
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the status of religious minorities in the Punjab province of Pakistan. [292311]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The UK continues to view the difficult situation facing religious minorities in the Punjab and indeed all of Pakistan as a cause for concern. The latest attacks on the Christian community in Gojra and ongoing persecution of the Ahmadiyya community are examples of the dangers faced by religious minorities, and serve as reminders of the need to protect the religious freedom of all Pakistanis.
Alongside our EU partners, the UK continues to encourage the Government of Pakistan to repeal or amend the blasphemy laws to reduce the widespread misuse of this legislation to discriminate against minority groups. In December 2008, the EU called upon the
Government of Pakistan to promote tolerance, to effectively protect freedom of belief and freedom of expression and to reform discriminatory legislation such as the blasphemy laws. In August 2009, the EU also raised the attacks on Christians in Gojra with the Pakistan Foreign Minister.
We continue to encourage Pakistan to fulfil its commitments under the UN Human Rights Council. During the last Universal Periodic Review in May 2008, we secured a commitment from the Government of Pakistan that checks would be introduced to regulate investigations into allegations of blasphemy that affect minority groups.
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what expenditure his Department has incurred on engaging private security companies and private military companies for work undertaken in (a) Iraq and (b) Afghanistan in each of the last three years. [291779]
Chris Bryant: The total values of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s contracts with private security companies in Iraq and Afghanistan in each of the last three years are as follows. We do not contract with private military companies.
| Iraq | |
| £ million | |
| Afghanistan | |
| £ million | |
The figures above cover contracts put in place by London, and reflect in the main the contract values and not the expenditure. They also now include contract variations and have also been calendar year annualised. These contracts also cover Partners Across Government with the costs thereof being shared out accordingly.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assistance the Government is giving to the government of Sri Lanka to implement political and constitutional reforms. [291526]
Mr. Ivan Lewis:
We regularly discuss with the Sri Lankan Government the need for an inclusive political solution to address the underlying causes of the recent conflict. It is ultimately for the Sri Lankan people to decide what a solution must look like, but we believe it would need to be based on equality, consent and rule of law. The All Party Representative Committee (APRC) was set up by the Sri Lankan President to build consensus on political reforms. In 2008, we funded a visit by APRC members to England, Wales and Northern Ireland to share our experiences of devolution, and peace building
in Northern Ireland. We encourage the Government of Sri Lanka to reach a satisfactory conclusion of the APRC process as soon as possible.
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Sudanese Government on the imprisonment of Lubana al-Hussein and the punishment of women arrested with her for wearing trousers. [291657]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: We raise human rights issues in Sudan through the EU and we have been in regular discussion with EU representatives in Khartoum and Stockholm regarding the arrests and trial. We have also made representations to the Government of Sudan (GoS) during the current session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva and highlighted the case in a statement to the Council on 15 September 2009.
Whilst we welcome the release of Ms Hussein on 8 September 2009, we continue to call upon the Government of Sudan to act in the spirit of the rights set out in the Interim National Constitution and in particular the Bill of Rights provision that no person should be subject to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.
Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 1 July 2009, Official Report, column 291W, on Western Sahara: fisheries, if he will make it his policy to seek the inclusion of a reference to the territorial extent of Morocco in any proposed agreement on fisheries between the EU and Morocco. [289327]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government have no plans at present to seek the inclusion of a reference to the territorial extent of Morocco in any future EU fisheries agreement with Morocco.
Future negotiations on the expiry of the EU-Morocco Fisheries Partnership Agreement in 2011 will take into account any changes that may occur before that time.
Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his Department's policy is on the establishment of a human rights monitoring mechanism in the Western Sahara. [290401]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The UK supports the call by the UN Secretary General, in his latest report on the UN Mission for Referendum in the Western Sahara (MINURSO), for the parties to remain engaged in a continuous and constructive dialogue with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and to make progress on the human dimension of the conflict.
The Government believe that greater openness and transparency on human rights by all the parties in the Western Sahara could create a significantly better environment for political dialogue between the parties.
Mike Penning:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was paid in attendance allowance to residents of (a) Hemel Hempstead
constituency, (b) Dacorum, (c) Hertfordshire and (d) England in (i) 1980, (ii) 1997, (iii) 2001, (iv) 2005 and (v) 2008. [289405]
Jonathan Shaw: The available information is shown in the table.
| Attendance allowance, expenditure: Cash terms | |||||
| £ million | |||||
| 1980-81 | 1997-98 | 2001-02 | 2005-06 | 2008-09 | |
| Notes: 1. Figures are expressed in £ million and rounded to the nearest £100,000 for all areas except England which is rounded to the nearest £1 million. 2. Expenditure is in cash (nominal) terms. 3. Figures given for Hemel Hempstead represent the Hemel Hempstead parliamentary constituency. 4. Figures given for Dacorum represent Dacorum local authority. 5. Figures given for Hertfordshire represent the county of Hertfordshire which is made up of the following local authorities: Broxbourne, Dacorum, East Hertfordshire, Hertsmere, North Hertfordshire, St. Albans, Stevenage, Three Rivers, Watford, Welwyn Hatfield. 6. Expenditure for 1980 is not available for these areas. 7. Figures are consistent with benefit expenditure tables available on the DWP website through the following link: http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd4/expenditure.asp Source: DWP statistical and accounting data. | |||||
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health on proposals to abolish attendance allowance outlined in the recent Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, in the last five months; and if she will make a statement. [292102]
Jonathan Shaw: The Department of Health’s Green Paper, “Shaping the Future of Care Together”, was a product of very close working between Government Ministers across a number of Departments, including the Secretary of State for Health and the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was paid in attendance allowance to residents of the Birmingham, Sparkbrook & Small Heath constituency in (a) 2001, (b) 2005 and (c) 2008. [291447]
Jonathan Shaw: The information is provided in the following table.
| Total value of attendance allowance payments to people in the Birmingham Sparkbrook and Small Heath parliamentary constituency in 2001, 2005 and 2008 | |
| £ million (nominal terms) | |
| Notes: 1. Figures are consistent with budget 2009 expenditure forecast. 2. Benefit and expenditure and caseload information is available on the Department website at: http://reasearch.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd4/medium_term.asp Source: DWP Statistical and Accounting data | |
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have ceased to receive carers allowance due to the receipt of a (a) pension and (b) other income replacement benefit in (i) St Ives constituency, (ii) Cornwall and (iii) England in each of the last five years. [287927]
Jonathan Shaw: The available information is in the following table:
| Number of people who ceased to receive carer’s allowance when they began claiming state pension or another income replacement benefit | |||
| March to February each year | St. Ives parliamentary constituency | Cornwall unitary authority | England |
| Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Data shows those people who ceased receiving carer’s allowance and began receiving state pension or another income replacement benefit in the same quarter but retained underlying entitlement. Source: Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study | |||
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2009, Official Report, column 690W, on carer's allowance, if she will extend carer's allowance to include a costs-related element. [289331]
Jonathan Shaw: There are no plans to extend carer’s allowance to include a costs-related element.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many people were eligible to receive carer's allowance in each local authority area on the latest date for which figures are available; [289390]
12 Oct 2009 : Column 52W—continued
(2) how many and what proportion of people were in receipt of carer's allowance in each local authority area on the latest date for which figures are available. [289391]
Jonathan Shaw: The available information has been placed in the Library.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much her Department spent on the administration of carer’s allowance in the last five years. [289707]
Jonathan Shaw: The following table shows the administration costs for carer’s allowance over the last five financial years.
| Total (£) | |
| Notes: Total administration costs include: 1. Staff: including salaries, national insurance, superannuating, overtime costs and other payroll adjustments. 2. Non staff: including medical evidence costs, travel, subsistence, postage and general office expenses i.e. stationery. 3. Recharges: payments given to take account of additional costs incurred piloting changes to working practises. Source: General ledgers (GL) and expenditure reports. | |
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Hemel Hempstead constituency (a) are entitled to and (b) receive carer's allowance. [289438]
Jonathan Shaw: The available information is in the following table:
| People in Hemel Hempstead constituency who are entitled to and receiving carer's allowance at November 2008 | |
| Number | |
| Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Source: Work and Pensions Longitudinal study 100 per cent. | |
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many parents resident in Wales defaulted on child support payments in each of the last five years. [291172]
Helen Goodman [holding answer 14 September 2009]: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to the hon. Member with the information requested and I have seen the response.
In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner as the Child Support Agency is now the responsibility of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.
You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many parents resident in Wales defaulted on child support payments in each of the last five years. [291172]
Information on the number of cases where the non-resident parent is not compliant and is living in Wales is provided in the attached table. This includes child maintenance cases held on both the current (CS2) and old (CSCS) computer systems and excludes cases administered clerically.
Quarterly figures as at June 2009 show 73% of non-resident parents living in Wales are compliant with their child maintenance payments.
I hope you find this answer helpful.
| Number of non-compliant cases where the non-resident parent lives in Wales | |||
| June each year | Cases where maintenance requested | Non-compliant cases | Percentage compliant |
| Notes: 1. This table shows the number of cases that were charged money via the Agency’s collection service over a three month period and the number of cases from which a payment was not received from over the same period. 2. Cases have been allocated to Wales by matching the residential postcode of the non-resident parent against the Office for National Statistics postcode directory. 3. Figures cover cases held on the CS2 and CSCS computer systems only and exclude the performance of cases administered clerically. 4. Volumes are rounded to the nearest hundred. | |||
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many cold weather payments have been made to residents of Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency in each year since 2003. [291702]
Helen Goodman: Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency is linked to Coleshill weather station. The number of times cold weather payments have been triggered at this weather station in each year since 2002-03 is given in the following table.
| Cold weather payment triggers at Coleshill weather station | |
| Number | |
| Source: DWP records | |
It is not possible to give the estimated number of payments made in 2002-03 and 2008-09 to residents of Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency
as this information is not available at constituency level but only by weather station, and Coleshill weather station covers a wider area than just this constituency.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) mobile telephones, (b) Blackberrys and (c) laptop computers have been issued to staff of her Department in each of the last five years; and how many of these were issued to (i) new staff and (ii) existing staff following (A) loss or (B) theft of a previous device. [290409]
Jim Knight: The information is not available in the format requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The information that is available is provided in the following tables.
| Numbers issued | |||
| Devices | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
| n/a = Not available. (1) Number of active laptop computers in issue at 31 March 2009. | |||
The Department’s records do not differentiate between items issued to new or existing staff, nor whether items were replaced as a result of loss, theft or other reasons. These details could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The number of Blackberry devices which were replaced for any reason during 2007 and 2008 is as follows:
| Number of devices replaced | |
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the average length of employment of staff of her Department at each Civil Service payband. [290412]
Jim Knight: The following table shows, at 31 March 2009, the average length of time staff have been employed at the Department for Work and Pensions and its predecessor organisations, broken down by grade.
| Grade | Average length of service years |
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 14 May 2009, Official Report, column 909W, on departmental official hospitality, how much her Department spent on hospitality and entertainment in 2008-09. [290176]
Jim Knight: The 2008-09 accounts have now been published and the expenditure on hospitality can be confirmed as £116,652.
All expenditure on entertainment (also known within the Department as hospitality) is made in accordance with published Departmental guidance on financial procedures and propriety, based on principles set out in Managing Public Money and the Treasury Handbook on Regularity and Propriety.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff took paternity leave from her Department in each of the last five years; and what the average duration of such leave was. [290414]
Jim Knight: The total number of staff in DWP that took paternity leave and the average length of such leave is shown in the following table.
| Number of staff taking paternity leave | Average duration (days) | |
| (1 )Information for the current year is available for the first quarter. | ||
Information is available from April 2007 when the Department introduced a new personnel computer system. Information prior to April 2007 is held on a number of legacy systems. The cost of extracting this information from these in the format requested for the period prior to April 2007 would be at a disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what employee reward schemes are offered to staff of her Department; what the purpose of each scheme is; how many staff participate in each scheme; and what the cost of operating each scheme was in each of the last five years. [290416]
Helen Goodman: There are two pay-related employee reward schemes operating in the Department for Work and Pensions. These are the end of year non-consolidated performance pay and special awards.
End of Year non-consolidated Performance Pay
DWP employees below the Senior Civil Service are eligible for an annual individual non-consolidated performance payment if they attain a “Top”, “Higher” or “Majority” rating under the annual Performance and
Development System. The payment awarded is determined by the employee’s pay band and the performance level achieved.
For the Senior Civil Service, end of year non-consolidated performance pay is determined by the relevant DWP SCS Pay Committee, in line with recommendations by the independent Senior Salaries Review Body.
(1) Performance awards from the year 2008-09 were payable in July of the financial year 2009-10. A total of £21.81 million has been paid. This is broken down as follows:
| Table 1: Department total | ||
| Financial year | Total number of recipients | Total paid (£ million) |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 57W—continued
| Table 2: Total below SCS | ||
| Financial year | Total number of recipients | Total paid (£ million) |
| Table 3: Total SCS | ||
| Financial year | Total number of recipients | Total paid (£ million) |
Individuals may also be entitled to a Special Award either as cash or retail vouchers. These are one-off recognition awards, payable at any time during the performance year and are not linked to the annual pay
award. Payments are made to recognise exceptional achievements beyond what would normally be expected.
Information on Special Awards prior to 2007-08 is not available.
Some individuals may have received more than one voucher during the year.
| Table 4: Cash payments | ||
| Financial year | Total number of recipients | Total paid (£ million) |
| Table 5: Voucher payments | ||
| Financial year | Total number of vouchers issued | Total paid (£ million) |
Loyalty and Recognition Award Scheme
The Department also has a Loyalty and Recognition scheme that allows staff who have completed 25 years service the choice of receiving an award of either a gift up to the value of £250 or an additional 37 hours (36 in London Pay Zones) special leave with pay regardless of the hours they work.
The following table shows the total number of staff awarded the Loyalty and Recognition Award in each year since April 2007. This has been broken down to show the number of staff who received the additional special leave and the days taken, the number who received the financial gift and the total cost of financial gift payments.
It is not possible to provide the monetary value of the additional special leave taken because information is not recorded in this format.
Information about the Loyalty and Recognition Scheme was not recorded centrally prior to April 2007. The cost of extracting this information in the format requested for the period prior to April 2007 would be at a disproportionate cost.
| Table 6: Loyalty and recognition awards | |||||
| Financial year | Total number of staff awarded the 25 year loyalty and recognition award | Total number of staff who opted to receive the additional special leave | Total number in days of additional special leave taken | Total number of staff who opted to receive the financial gift | Total cost of financial gift payments (£) |
| Notes: 1. The information in tables 1 and 2 is based on the numbers of employees recorded on the DWP payroll systems as having received a qualifying performance mark. These are headcount. 2. Some individuals may have received more than one type of bonus payment in the year, which is why the information has been presented separately and not as an aggregated total. 3. The performance bonus is paid in the financial year following the performance year of 1 April to 31 March 2009. 4. The total amount paid includes Employers National Insurance Contribution (ERNIC). 5. In-year cash bonus data was previously held on a separate IT system. Data from this system can only be obtained from a third party and there would be a cost ascribed to this provision. This would bring the cost of answering this PQ to above the threshold considered proportionate. | |||||
These figures are the best available.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which Minister in her Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in her Department; whether her Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if she will make a statement. [289731]
Jim Knight: I have responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money within the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
DWP established a departmental wide change programme in 2007 in order to transform the way services are delivered, so that we transform the quality of customer service and drive up the efficiency of our delivery. Transforming DWP means putting the customer at the heart of everything we do.
DWP is committed to being an exemplar of effective service delivery and we are the first Government Department to have a Department Strategic Objective (DS07) to this effect. To support this we are developing and delivering new integrated services so that DWP customers will have their needs met through a single contact with us most of the time. We are also offering customers greater choice on how they access services and have an ambition to have most of our services available online for those that prefer to use this channel.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of her Department's waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289618]
Jim Knight: Included within the targets for Sustainable Operations on the Government Estate is a requirement for Departments to achieve recycling rates of 40 per cent. by 2010 and 75 per cent. by 2020. The Department already surpasses the initial target and is well on track to achieve the longer term objective.
The following table shows the total measurable waste produced by the Department and the amount recycled for the year ended 31 March 2009 compared with the year ended 31 March 2008.
| Total measurable waste | ||
| Year ended 31 March 2008 | Year ended 31 March 2009 | |
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what support her Department has given to charities which help the elderly in each of the last six years. [289709]
Angela Eagle: My Department works closely with a wide range of organisations both large and small, to ensure the voice of older people is heard. Funding from Government is not necessarily provided direct to charitable organisations, however, they can receive support through a range of processes.
For example, our LinkAge Plus pilots provided funding (£10 million) and engaged with local government, voluntary and community sectors including charities to ensure better information and access to services, putting older people at the forefront of service design and delivery.
More recently, my Department, along with DCSF, DH and the Office for the Third Sector is financing a £5.5 million programme to fund 12 sites encouraging
intergenerational volunteering. These sites will be run by local authorities in partnership with the third sector including charities.
The Department funds partnerships between, for example, local authorities and voluntary groups. It is not possible to easily identify the proportion which goes to charities.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have (a) applied for and (b) received housing benefit in (i) North West Cambridgeshire, (ii) Cambridgeshire, (iii) Peterborough, (iv) Huntingdonshire and (v) England in each of the last five years. [291480]
Helen Goodman: The information is not available in the format requested; the available information is in the following tables.
| Housing benefit recipients May 2005 to May 2007 | |||
| May 2005 | May 2006 | May 2007 | |
| Notes: 1. The data refer to benefit units, which may be a single person or a couple. 2. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 3. Figures for any non-responding authorities have been estimated. 4. Housing benefit figures exclude any extended payment cases. 5. Figures for Cambridgeshire include Huntingdonshire district council; Cambridge city council; South Cambridgeshire district council; East Cambridgeshire district council; and Fenland district council. Source: Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management Information System Quarterly 100 per cent caseload stock-count taken in May 2005 to May 2007. | |||
| Housing benefit recipients November 2008 to May 2009 | ||
| November 2008 | May 2009 | |
| Notes: 1. The data refer to benefit units, which may be a single person or a couple. 2. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 3. Figures for any non-responding authorities have been estimated. 4. Housing benefit figures exclude any extended payment cases. 5. The earliest available data for the Single Housing Benefit Extract are for November 2008. 6. Figures for Cambridgeshire include Huntingdonshire district council; Cambridge city council; South Cambridgeshire district council; East Cambridgeshire district council; and Fenland district council. Source: Single Housing Benefit Extract (SHBE) for November 2008 and May 2009. | ||
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the cost to registered social landlords of the introduction of direct payment of local housing allowance in (a) 2009-10 and (b) each of the next five years. [291580]
Helen Goodman: Local housing allowance rules are not applied to registered social landlord cases. Therefore, direct payments will have no impact on this group.
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people resident in Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency were in receipt of housing benefit in each on the latest date for which figures are available. [291555]
Helen Goodman: Housing benefit information is not available at constituency level.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when she plans to ( a) commence and (b) conclude her review of the outcomes of the reforms of the housing benefit system. [291577]
Helen Goodman: As was set out earlier this year in ‘Building Britain's Future’, we intend to consult on the reform of housing benefit later on this year. No decision has yet been made about the exact timing of the consultation exercise.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 61W—continued
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many and what proportion of incapacity benefit claims ended in each quarter of each of the last 12 years (a) because the claimant (i) died, (ii) returned to work and (iii) was moved on to each different type of benefit and (b) for another reason; [291278]
(2) how many and what proportion of incapacity benefit claimants who had left the benefit since the introduction of employment and support allowance did so because the claimant (a) is now deceased, (b) has returned to work and (c) has moved onto another benefit, broken down by benefit type, up to the end of February 2009. [291282]
Jonathan Shaw [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The information requested is not available.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people claimed incapacity benefit in Perth and North Perthshire constituency in each of the last three years. [289517]
Jonathan Shaw: The available information is provided in the following table:
| Incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance claimants in Perth and North Perthshire constituency for quarters ending November 2006 to November 2008 | |
| November | Number |
| Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Figures excluded employment and support allowance introduced in October 2008 for new claimants. 3. Data are published at: www.nomisweb.co.uk Source: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. | |
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many jobs were advertised in Jobcentre Plus offices in each (a) region and (b) Jobcentre Plus district in each month of the last five years. [289195]
Jim Knight: The available information has been placed in the Library.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many jobs advertised in Jobcentre Plus offices were sourced through recruitment agencies in each (a) region and (b) Jobcentre Plus district in each month of the last five years; [289470]
(2) how many people have found employment from jobs advertised in Jobcentre Plus which are sourced from recruitment agencies in each (a) region and (b) Jobcentre Plus district in each month of the last five years. [289471]
Mr. Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many job centres are located in buildings which are not owned by the Government. [289268]
Jim Knight: There are 741 Jobcentre Plus offices open to the public that are in buildings not owned by the Government. These premises are supplied to Jobcentre Plus by our Estate Services Provider, Telereal Trillium, under the PRIME contract arrangements.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the answer of 26 November 2008, how many formal complaints of each type were received by Jobcentre Plus in each region in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10 on the latest date for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement. [290825]
Jim Knight [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking, with reference to the Answer of 26 November 2008, how many formal complaints of each type were received by Jobcentre Plus in each region in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10 on the latest date for which figures are available. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
Jobcentre Plus operates a three-tiered feedback process in response to issues raised by customers:
level 1 is feedback received at a specific Jobcentre Plus Office responded to by the Site Manager;
level 2 is feedback received by the District Manager or feedback not resolved at level 1;
level 3 is feedback received direct by the Chief Executive, particularly correspondence from MPs, or feedback not resolved at level 2.
The information requested is shown in the following tables.
| Level 1 and 2 complaints received by Jobcentre Plus | ||
| Jobcentre Plus r egion | 2008 - 09 | 2009 - 10 |
| Level 3 complaints received by Jobcentre Plus | ||
| Jobcentre Plus region | 2008 - 09 | 2009 - 10 |
The figures for 2009/10 are up to the end of July.
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of (a) Jobcentre Plus staff in each district and (b) Pension Service staff received bonuses in each month of (i) 2009-10 to date, (ii) 2008-09 and (iii) 2007-08. [286640]
Jim Knight: The information is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether she has recently changed the number of hours of training for (a) personal advisers, (b) decision makers, (c) disability benefit advisers and (d) specialist lone parents advisers who are (i) new employees and (ii) existing Jobcentre Plus employees; and if she will make a statement. [289504]
Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking whether she has recently changed the number of hours of training for (a) personal advisers, (b) decision makers, (c) disability benefit advisers and (d) specialist lone parents advisers who are (i) new employees and (ii) existing Jobcentre Plus employees; and if she will make a statement. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
The total hours of learning and product sets for advisers, decision makers, disability benefit advisers and specialist lone parent advisers has not changed.
However, to support the current high volume of new recruits taking up these roles, we have prioritised the learning programme that they undertake.
New recruits will initially complete prioritised learning products to enable them to take up their positions. This prioritised routeway does not replace the full standard learning product set as the remaining products are completed once the individual has taken up post, within a timeframe determined by their local managers. By way of illustration, a newly recruited adviser will complete 130 hours of prioritised learning prior to taking up post and the remaining 85 hours of learning subsequently.
Existing Jobcentre Plus employees would again initially complete priority learning to enable them to move into an adviser role but the hours of training on priority products would be reduced dependant upon their existing skills and knowledge. Similarly, the remaining learning products are completed within a timeframe determined by local managers.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) individuals and (b) couples with a dependant child were in receipt of (i) income-based and (ii) contribution-based jobseeker's allowance in each of the last 10 years. [290848]
Helen Goodman [holding answer 9 September 2009]: Information is not available for the requested breakdown.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many lone parents under the age of 18 were in receipt of income-based jobseeker's allowance in each of the last 10 years. [290863]
Helen Goodman [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The information is not available in the format requested. However, almost all lone parents under the age of 18 on benefits claim income support rather than jobseeker’s allowance as they are not required to be available for work.
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when she plans to reply to the letter of 8 June 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on Ms C Sudbury. [290235]
Jim Knight: A reply was sent to my right hon. Friend on 4 August 2009.
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when she plans to reply to the letter of 17 June 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on Mr. J Hopkinson. [290238]
Jim Knight: A reply was sent to my right hon. Friend on 11 August 2009.
Mr. Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when she plans to reply to the letter of 28 July 2009 from the hon. Member for Walsall North concerning a constituent. [291089]
Jonathan Shaw [holding answer 14 September 2009]: A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 27 August 2009.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the number of people aged under 25 years old who have not paid sufficient national insurance contributions to obtain full benefits; and if she will make a statement. [289765]
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which sub-contractors have non contracts for phase one of the Flexible New Deal; how many such sub-contractors are third sector organisations; and if she will make a statement. [290900]
Jim Knight [holding answer 9 September 2009]: A total of 14 prime contractors were awarded the FND Phase 1 contracts. Additionally about 150 organisations will become sub-contractors for FND1 and we expect of these approximately 40percent of the total to be third sector organisations. These have not yet been finalised and numbers may be subject to change between now and the contract go live when DWP will have full visibility of the sub-contractors.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 65W—continued
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Hemel Hempstead constituency have received assistance through New Deal schemes in each year since 1997. [289437]
Jim Knight: The information requested is as follows.
| Number of people who have entered into the New Deal in Hemel Hempstead constituency. | |
| Number of starters | |
| Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Figures may not sum to total due to rounding. 3. Westminster parliamentary constituency (post May 2005) is allocated using the ONS Postcode Directory and the customer's postcode. 4. Latest data for the calendar year of starting New Deal is to February 2009. 5. The New Deal for Young People pilots began in January 1998 and full national roll-out occurred in April 1998 6. The New Deal for 25 plus programme was introduced in July 1998 7. The New Deal for Lone Parents was introduced in October 1998 8. The New Deal for Disabled People was introduced in July 2001 9. Data on New Deal 50 plus is available from January 2004 (programme was introduced in April 2000) 10. Data for New Deal for Partners is available from April 2004 (programme started in May 1999) Source: Department for Work and Pensions, Information Directorate | |
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment she has made of the effect of staffing levels in the (a) the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate and (b) the HSE Nuclear Directorate on (i) safety at the UK’s nuclear sites and (ii) the rate of progress of the generic design assessment. [289870]
Jonathan Shaw: Primary responsibility for safety at the UK’s nuclear sites rests with the operators of those sites. The role of HSE’s Nuclear Directorate, which includes the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate, is to provide regulatory oversight and assurance that they discharge that responsibility. I am advised by Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Nuclear Installations that he has the resources available to discharge that role.
As a result of successive recruitment exercises, resources in the Directorate for generic design assessment should reach planned levels by December this year. The Health and Safety Executive is confident, subject to the provision of the necessary documentation from the industry, that it will meet the published timetable for completing a meaningful assessment of the generic design proposals by June 2011.
The Government are determined to ensure that nuclear regulation is properly and sustainably resourced to meet the challenges of the future. It has published proposals to restructure the Nuclear Directorate to that end, which can be found at:
http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/consultations/hse_restruct/hse_restruct.aspx
Greg Clark:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what budget her Department has set for the (a) Nuclear Installations Inspectorate, (b) Office
for Civil Nuclear Security and (c) HSE Nuclear Directorate for each of the next five financial years. [290372]
Jonathan Shaw: The information requested in relation to 2009-10 and 2010-11 is provided in the following table.
Gross Expenditure budget of the Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) Nuclear Directorate (ND), comprising the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII) and the Office for Civil Nuclear Security (OCNS), for this and the next financial year.
| £ 000 | |||
| Financial year | (a) NII | (b) OCNS | (c) ND |
| Notes: 1. HSE has allocated a budget to ND for 2009-10 and an indicative budget for 2010-11 as shown in the table. The figures are rounded to the nearest thousand. 2. HSE has not yet set budgets for 2011-12 and beyond as this year is outside of the current Spending Review settlement. | |||
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what estimate her Department has made of the number of people entitled to a pension credit who have not claimed it in the Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency in each of the last three years; [291446]
(2) how many people in Birmingham Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency (a) are entitled to and (b) receive pension credit. [291567]
Angela Eagle: Estimates of eligibility and therefore those who are entitled to pension credit but have not claimed it are not available below the level of Great Britain.
The latest estimates of the take-up rates and the number of those entitled to but not receiving pension credit are published in the report "Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take-Up in 2007-08”.
As at February 2009 there were 7,680 households in receipt of pension credit in the Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency.
Notes:
1. The number of households in receipt are rounded to the nearest ten.
2. Household recipients are those people who claim pension credit either for themselves only or on behalf of a household.
Source:
DWP Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. data.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households in Hemel Hempstead constituency were in receipt of pension credit in the last 12 month period for which figures are available. [289436]
Angela Eagle: The number of household recipients of pension credit in the Hemel Hempstead constituency is shown in the following table.
| Households in Hemel Hempstead constituency in receipt of pension credit | |
| 2008 | Number |
| Notes: 1. The number of households in receipt of pension credit are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 3. Household recipients are those people who claim pension credit either for themselves only or on behalf of a household. Source: DWP Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. data. | |
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what percentage of Pensions Service staff left the service in the last (a) six and (b) 12 months. [289764]
Angela Eagle: The information available is in the following table:
| Leavers | ||
| November 2008 to April 2009 (six months) | July 2008 to April 2009 (10 months) | |
| Note: The Pension Service (TPS) and Disability and Carers Service (DCS) merged to form Pension, Disability and Carers Service (PDCS) in April 2008. The resource management staffing records remained as separate entities until April 2009—therefore data for the former TPS are not available beyond that date Source: RM Dataview. | ||
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) the UK and (b) Coventry were obliged to retire at the age of 65 years in 2008-09. [291516]
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether her Department plans to make a submission to the Scottish Executive’s National Conversation consultation on Scotland’s constitutional future. [288947]
Jim Knight: The Department for Work and Pensions has not submitted evidence to the Scottish Government’s National Conversation.
The Commission on Scottish Devolution was established by majority vote in the Scottish Parliament and with the full support of the UK Government. UK Departments submitted evidence to the Commission during its first phase of evidence gathering.
The Commission recently published its Final Report, which can be found here:
http://www.commissiononscottishdevolution.org.uk/uploads/2009-06-12-csd-final-report-2009fbookmarked.pdf
A Steering Group has been established under the chairmanship of the Secretary of State for Scotland to help the UK Government and the Scottish Parliament plan how to take forward the Caiman recommendations and deliver stronger devolution within a stronger United Kingdom.
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) York, (b) North Yorkshire, (c) Yorkshire and the Humber and (d) England have received a (i) grant and (ii) loan from the Social Fund in each year since the establishment of that Fund. [290652]
Helen Goodman (holding answer 9 September 2009): The available information is shown in the following table.
| Yorkshire and the Humber | England | |
| n/a = Not available. Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 100. 2. The information provided is Management Information; our preference is to answer all Parliamentary Questions using Official/National Statistics but in this case we only have Management Information available. It is not quality assured to the same extent as Official/National Statistics and there are some issues with the data, for example, it does not include applications which were processed clerically and have not yet been entered on to the Social Fund Computer System. 3. Awards shown are initial awards and do not include awards made on review. 4. Information cannot be supplied for York and North Yorkshire as the smallest geographical area we can provide figures for is Social Fund Budget Area. 5. Figures are for initial awards made, not the number of people who received an initial award. (Some people received more than one initial award.). Source: DWP Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System | ||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 69W—continued
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was paid in benefit payments to residents of (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum, (c) Hertfordshire and (d) England in (i) 1980, (ii) 1997, (iii) 2001, (iv) 2005 and (v) 2008. [289406]
Jim Knight: The requested information is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the number and proportion of benefit claimants whose benefit entitlement was incorrectly assessed in each of the last three years for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement. [289766]
Helen Goodman: The Department's measurement system for fraud and error does not estimate the number or proportion of cases of fraud or error over a given period.
It does, however, provide estimates of the average proportion and number of claims that are fraudulent or in error at any one time during a year for income support, jobseeker's allowance and pension credit. Estimates are also produced for housing benefit, but only on the proportion of claims that are fraudulent or in error at any one time during a year.
The available information is provided in the following tables.
| Estimates of average proportion and number of incorrect cases in Income Support at any one time | ||
| Average number incorrect (thousand) | Average proportion incorrect (percentage) | |
| Notes: The average number incorrect has been rounded to the nearest thousand. Source: Supplementary tables to National Statistics publication series "Fraud and Error in the Benefit System | ||
| Estimates of average proportion and number of incorrect cases in Jobseeker's Allowance at any one time | ||
| Average number incorrect (thousand) | Average proportion incorrect (percentage) | |
| Notes: The average number incorrect has been rounded to the nearest thousand. Source: Supplementary tables to National Statistics publication series "Fraud and Error in the Benefit System | ||
| Estimates of average proportion and number of incorrect cases in Pension Credit at any one time | ||
| Average number incorrect (thousand) | Average proportion incorrect (percentage) | |
| Notes: The average number incorrect has been rounded to the nearest thousand. Source: Supplementary tables to National Statistics publication series "Fraud and Error in the Benefit System | ||
| Estimate; of average proportion of incorrect cases in Housing Benefit any one time | |
| Average proportion incorrect (percentage) | |
| Source: Supplementary tables to National Statistics publication series "Fraud and Error in the Benefit System | |
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what new procedures her Department plans to introduce to detect and prosecute those abusing the benefits system. [291277]
Helen Goodman [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The Department is always open to adopting new innovations to improve the detection and prosecution of benefit thieves. For example, we are currently piloting the use of Voice Risk Analysis, investigating the effectiveness of new data analysis techniques and working with new partners, including the National Fraud Authority.
Mr. Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will assess the effect on (a) pensioners and (b) persons receiving benefits of proposals to phase out cheques as methods of payment. [291743]
Helen Goodman: Introducing a more modern, efficient and reliable system to replace cheques will enable us to provide a better service to our customers. Suppliers will be expected to put in place suitable arrangements to meet the needs of all customers who cannot open or operate an account.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what her Department's most recent estimate is of the average cost per person per month of (a) jobseeker's allowance, (b) income support and (c) housing benefit. [290481]
Jim Knight: The answer is not available in the format requested. The available information is in the tables.
| February 2009 (£) | |
|
Income support non-MIG claimants average weekly amount in payment | |
|
Jobseekers allowance claimants average weekly amount in payment | |
| Note: Average amounts are shown as pounds per week and rounded to the nearest penny. Source: DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study. | |
| May 2009 (£) | |
| Notes: 1. Average amounts are shown as pounds per week and rounded to the nearest penny. 2. Figures for any non-responding authorities have been estimated. 3. Housing benefit figures exclude any extended payment cases. Source: Single Housing Benefit Extract (SHBE). | |
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people claiming the state pension had their pensions payments temporarily suspended to perform system checks in each month of 2009; and how many days on average such checks lasted. [291156]
Angela Eagle [holding answer 14 September 2009]: The information requested is not available. This is because payments of state pension are not temporarily suspended to perform any system checks.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reasons individuals claiming the state pension may have their pension payments suspended. [291763]
Angela Eagle: Payment of state pension would be suspended until the issue in question is resolved. The Secretary of State has the discretion to suspend state pension in whole or in part and would normally do so until any issue which may lead to a doubt about ongoing entitlement had been resolved.
State pension may be suspended due to the following reasons:
When official DWP correspondence, which has been sent to the customer, is returned by Royal Mail stating ‘not known at this address’. Upon receipt of undelivered correspondence, we would suspend payment of benefit and take action to trace an up to date address for the customer. Payment would only be reinstated when a current address is obtained from the customer or their representative.
When benefit payments are returned by a bank or building society noted ‘account closed reason unknown’. Inquiries would need to be made to establish why the payment has not been made to the nominated account and this would prompt suspension of future payments until the reason is known.
Where the Department has been informed that a customer receiving Widows Benefit has remarried or where investigations show that a widow is living together as husband and wife with a new partner.
When a customer is remanded in custody.
When inquiries or allegations are made regarding a misappropriation of funds by the customer’s representative or power of attorney. This would be a request by either the Social Services or via third party disclosure and would result in suspension of benefit.
When the Department has been notified of the customer's death but the exact date is currently not known. Payment would be suspended until the issues in question are resolved.
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people resident in Birmingham, Sparkbrook & Small Heath constituency were in receipt of a state pension in each of the last three years. [291554]
| Number of recipients of state pension in Birmingham Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency | |
| Number | |
| Notes: 1. Figures are as at February for the years shown. 2. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10; some additional disclosure control has been applied. 3. Constituency is for the Westminster parliament. Source: DWP Information Directorate—Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study | |
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people claimed the state pension in Perth and North Perthshire constituency in each of the last three years. [289516]
Angela Eagle: Information on the number of people who have claimed the State Pension is not available. Information on the total State Pension caseload for the Perth and North Perthshire constituency is in the following table.
| Caseload | |
| Notes: 1. Figures are as at November for the years shown. 2. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10; some additional disclosure control has been applied. 3. Caseload refers to successful claims. 4. Constituencies are for the Westminster parliament. Source: DWP Information Directorate—Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study. | |
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate her Department has made of the number of its new customers who will be assessed using the work capability assessment; and how many and what proportion of these customers are expected to flow onto (a) jobseeker's allowance, (b) employment and support allowance (ESA) work related activity group and (c) ESA support group in each month to March 2012. [288520]
Jonathan Shaw [holding answer 20 July 2009]: Information on the Work Capability Assessment for Employment and Support Allowance is due for publication on 13 October.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent discussions her Department has had with the Department of Energy and Climate Change on the winter fuel payment scheme. [289930]
Angela Eagle: We regularly review our policies with other Government Departments which have an interest. However, there have been no recent discussions with the Department of Energy and Climate Change regarding winter fuel payment policy.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many applications for winter fuel payments from residents of (a) Chorley, (b) Lancashire and (c) England were subject to inaccurate data handling by the Pension Service resulting in an extension of prioritising time in the winter of 2007-08. [292106]
Angela Eagle: The information requested is not available.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what measures are in place to ensure that inaccuracies in data held by the Pension Service do not result in the late issue of winter fuel payments. [292107]
Angela Eagle: The measures for existing DWP customers are that winter fuel payments are generated using existing data from the payment system. For customers who are not in receipt of another DWP benefit, a properly completed claim form must be received by Thursday of the qualifying week (third week of September), in order to guarantee payment before Christmas.
If more information is required from the customer they may not receive their payment before Christmas. However, as long as a properly completed claim is received by 30 March, payments can still be issued up to mid-June.
During 2008-09 the Pension, Disability and Carers Service delivered automatic winter fuel payments to over 99.9 per cent. of eligible customers by the end of December, and as a result over 12.5 million customers received their payment before Christmas 2008.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development on how many occasions he visited Afghanistan on official business in the last 12 months. [290420]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: I have visited Afghanistan twice on official business in the last 12 months.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 74W—continued
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009, Official Report, columns 508-09W, on Afghanistan: overseas aid, when he expects the 48 kilometre road through the Babaji area to be completed; and when he expects work on the hydro-power plant in Geresk to be completed. [289655]
Mr. Michael Foster: The two projects are currently early in the design stage. The implementation of the projects will be co-funded with other donors and is due to be completed by 2013 at the earliest given their scale.
Mr. Ellwood:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2009, Official Report, column 675W, on Afghanistan: theme parks, what his estimate is of the number of people who
have used the Park for Women in Lashkar each week since its establishment; and what recent assessment he has made of the condition of the park. [289628]
Mr. Michael Foster: Although there are no accurate figures for park usage, we have reports that the Bolan Park is busy most evenings, and on Fridays usually reaches full capacity.
Responsibility for park maintenance was transferred to the Afghan Government in 2008. While we monitor the overall impact of our stabilisation and development projects, we do not routinely check such details as the condition of and use of the park, which is now a matter for the Afghan Government.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many copies of the Budget 2009 Report his Department ordered; and what the cost of that order was. [290267]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department’s financial reporting system holds no record of ordering any copies of the Budget 2009 report.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department spent on newspaper advertising by publication in the latest year for which figures are available. [289476]
Mr. Michael Foster: The following table sets out the Department for International Development's newspaper advertising costs during the financial year 2008-09, and from April 2009 to date, the majority of which is in recruitment advertising.
| Publication | Cost (£) |
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development on which initiatives of his Department and its agencies expenditure on advertising has been incurred in each of the last five years; how much was spent on each such initiative; and which such initiatives were advertised through the Central Office of Information. [290150]
Mr. Michael Foster:
In the last five years the Department for International Development (DFID) has spent the
following on advertising and publicity. 98 per cent. of this expenditure has been for procurement and recruitment reasons.
| Total amount (£) | Amount spent via CO I | |
DFID has advertised other initiatives that do not fall into the categories above over the last five years, but information on them is not held centrally and cannot be provided without incurring disproportionate costs.
DFID has one non-departmental public body, the Commonwealth Scholarships Commission (CSC) which undertakes publicity and advertising to promote scholarship opportunities and the Commission’s Professional Fellowship Programme. The breakdown of spend over the last five years is shown as follows:
| Total amount | Amount spent via COI | |
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff have (a) been dismissed and (b) had their contract terminated by his Department in each of the last five years; what the reason was in each case; and what the severance costs in relation to (i) dismissal and (ii) contract termination were in each such year. [290553]
Mr. Michael Foster: In each of the last five financial years the number of Home Civil Service staff dismissed was less than five. Providing the specific numbers could potentially identify individuals concerned and so breach confidentiality.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many laptop computers have been issued to staff of his Department in each of the last five years; and how many of these were issued to (i) new staff and (ii) existing staff following the (A) loss or (B) theft of a previous device. [290549]
Mr. Michael Foster: The numbers of laptops issued to Department for International Development (DFID) staff in each of the last five years is as follows:
| Financial year | Laptops issued | Issued to existing staff after loss | Issued to existing staff after theft |
The increased number in 2007-08 corresponded with a laptop refresh project. DFID does not differentiate between new and existing staff when issuing laptops.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what flexi-time arrangements were available to staff of his Department in each of the last five years; and how many staff participated in such arrangements in each such year. [290555]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) operates a Flexible Working Hours Scheme (FWHS). This allows employees to work additional hours and convert them into leave, up to a maximum of three days in every four week period.
It is a matter for each member of staff to apply to join the FWHS, approval being granted through line management. It is not possible to supply details on staff participation as records are not kept centrally.
The FWHS has been in operation for a number of years, and the only change made to the scheme in the last five years has been to increase the amount of additional hours employees are allowed to convert into leave for every four week period, from two days to three days.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what IT systems have been in development for use within his Department in the last five years; what the reason for the development of each system was; how much has been spent on the development of each system; and which systems have been subsequently (a) implemented, (b) terminated prior to implementation and (c) terminated following implementation. [290550]
Mr. Michael Foster: The following IT systems have been in development for use within the Department for International Development since July 2004:
The Quest project introduced an Electronic Document and Records Management (EDRM) system, upgraded the Email system and Desktop software, and developed a Collaborative Working system. The project was completed in March 2006 at a cost of £11.68 million.
The ARIES Enterprise Resource Planning system was developed to support DFID’s project management, finance, procurement and reporting needs. The contract cost was £17.6 million, and the system has been operational since November 2007.
The HR Transformation project was primarily a business change project but included a number of smaller IT components to help manage staff administration, including the Performance Management System and 360 Feedback System. The cost of the HR Transformation project was £6.0 million.
The Knowledge and Information Management Programme began in 2008 and contains a number of IT projects, including the Chapter system to manage ministerial and parliamentary correspondence and an upgrade to the Quest EDRM system. The programme is on track to complete in March 2011. The current cost estimate is £6.8 million.
All the systems mentioned have been implemented and are in use. No major IT systems have been terminated either prior to implementation or before their planned lifespan after implementation.
One IT project run by DFID Pakistan was cancelled in September 2008. The project had spent £7,000 at the point of cancellation.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of staff of his Department are (a) male and (b) female. [290407]
Mr. Michael Foster: Civil service statistics are collected by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) from the Annual Civil Service Employment Survey. The latest published statistics are for 31 March 2008 available at:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/pdfdir/cs0109.pdf
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of the average length of employment of staff of his Department at each civil service pay band. [290552]
Mr. Michael Foster: Details of the average length of service of Home Civil Service (HCS) staff in the Department for International Development (DFID), is shown in the following table:
| Pay band | Average length of service (approximate) |
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff there were in his Department (a) in 1997 and (b) on the latest date for which figures are available. [292066]
Mr. Michael Foster: Details of Home Civil Service (HCS) staffing numbers within the Department for International Development (DFID)—as at (a) 1997, and (b) end of September 2009 (the latest figures available)—are shown in the following table.
Numbers of our staff appointed in country (SAIC) are shown separately. These are staff engaged locally overseas, on local terms and conditions, to support our work in developing countries.
| Home Civil Service (HCS) staff | Staff Appointed in Country (SAIC) | Total | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 78W—continued
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development with reference to the answer of 15 December 2008, Official Report, column 346W, on departmental marketing, how many staff in his Department are responsible for branding activity; and what the cost of employing such staff was in 2008-09. [290213]
Mr. Michael Foster: In 2008-09 no one person had sole responsibility for branding. All employees who work on public-facing communications are responsible for representing the activity of the Department for International Development clearly and appropriately in the UK and overseas, as outlined in our Communications Strategy:
http://www.dfid.gov.uk/Documents/publications/commsstrategy.pdf
As such it is not possible to disaggregate figures for employment costs on this activity from overall budgets without incurring disproportionate cost.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department spent on hire vehicles in each of the last five financial years. [291609]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) does hold the requested information centrally and cannot provide it without incurring a disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many properties owned by his Department were liable for payment of (a) business rates and (b) empty property rates in each of the last five years; and what the liability in respect of each was in each such year. [290556]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) has only one freehold property in the United Kingdom, Abercrombie House office in East Kilbride.
The business rates bill for the last five years for this office was as follows:
| £ | |
DFID has had no liability for empty property rates over this period.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff took paternity leave from his Department in each of the last five years; and what the average duration of such leave has been. [290554]
Mr. Michael Foster: The number of home civil servants who took paternity leave in the last five years is as follows:
| Number | |
The majority of staff took their full entitlement of 10 days. There is no centrally held record for staff appointed in country.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289737]
Mr. Michael Foster: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has assigned me with the responsibility for overseeing delivery of value for money within the Department.
The Department is implementing a range of reforms to ensure it achieves the maximum development impact for each pound spent. Teams are established as required to deliver these reforms.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what data his Department holds on the level of diversity in its recruitment of employees in each of the last three years. [290508]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) keeps volunteered diversity recruitment data on age, disability, ethnicity and gender.
DFID’s Annual Diversity Report and Data Analysis can be found at:
http://www.dfid.gov.uk/Documents/diversity/diversity-report-2008-09.pdf
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of his Department's waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289669]
Mr. Michael Foster: The proportion of waste from the Department of International Development's UK offices which was recycled in 2008-09 was 76.8 per cent.
Mr. Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will (a) place in the Library and (b) publish on his Department’s website a copy of each (i) project document, (ii) logframe and (iii) evaluation report relating to each project listed on his Department’s website’s project information database. [292156]
Mr. Michael Foster:
Following the publication of summary project information on our website in September, we are working on arrangements and a timetable for publishing further details of our projects. In doing so, we need to balance our commitment to transparency
with the need to protect sensitive information, and the cost and practicality of publishing information in a usable format.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many sick days were taken by staff of his Department in the last five years; and what the cost to the public purse of such absences was. [290551]
Mr. Michael Foster: In 2008, there were 11,487 days lost to sickness absence in the Department for International Development (DFID).
Prior to 2008, the Cabinet Office has published previous annual sickness absence reports for the Civil Service (from 2003-2007). These are available online at:
http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/who/statistics/sickness.aspx
Costs of sickness absence are not held centrally and without incurring disproportionate cost it is not possible to provide an accurate figure for the cost of sick absence over the last five years.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many external training courses were attended by staff of his Department in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of each course. [289603]
Mr. Michael Foster: It is not possible, without incurring disproportionate costs, to provide details on how external training courses were attended by staff in the Department for International Development (DFID) and what the cost was of each course.
Sub-departments and overseas offices within DFID are responsible for arranging and financing staff training. Information on the amount spent on training courses is not held centrally.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment his Department has made of the effects of its spending on education in developing countries on the education of disabled children in those countries. [289251]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) is committed to the integration of disability policy and practice as set out in DFID’s policy “Reducing Poverty by Tackling Social Exclusion” (2005). The practice paper, “Working on Disability in Country Programmes” (2007), sets out DFID’s approach and commitments on disability which is main-streamed across all sectors, including education. These are available in the Library of the House and on the DFID website:
www.dfid.gov.uk
DFID’s country-led approach helps support partner countries’ plans, policies and programmes to ensure that children, including those with disabilities, benefit from quality education. This holistic approach includes working with partners to ensure that access to education by children with special needs is addressed.
The UK is spending £8.5 billion over the period 2006-07 to 2015-16 in support of education in developing countries. DFID’s new White Paper “Eliminating World Poverty: Building our Common Future” announced that a new Education Strategy will be launched. A public consultation process will be held up to end October, which will enable us to review how we support social inclusion issues and receive views from interested parties.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what account his Department takes of the twin-track approach to disability set out in his Department's paper, Disability, poverty and development, in the development of its work on education and disability. [289255]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) is implementing the “twin-track” approach on its work on education and disability in the following ways:
The “How to note” on Working on Disability in Country Programmes is being disseminated to DFID programmes and to Civil Society partners. The note is available at:
http://www.dfid.gov.uk/Documents/publications/Disguide DFID.pdf
DFID requires all 22 priority countries to carry out a Country Governance Analysis (CGA) as part of the planning and design of new country strategies. This analysis includes an assessment of gender inequalities and of excluded groups, their interests and needs. To date, partner governments in Uganda and Ethiopia have explicitly targeted disabled children in their national strategies for education.
DFID supports civil society in shaping the design of national education systems and services, so that the interests of disabled people and other excluded groups are reflected in national planning processes. DFID also supports capacity building for disabled people's organisations, so that they can engage with government and others on the design of essential service provision.
DFID supports the global Disability Rights Fund (with a current contribution of £868,000 over 18 months) which provides grants to work with and help empower disabled people.
Starting in 2009-10, DFID will include disabled people when designing evaluation systems and other tools for building the evidence of good practice in reducing poverty, including through education.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much of his Department's expenditure on education was incurred in relation to (a) projects directly targeting disabled children and (b) broader projects on education with disability mainstreamed in (i) Nigeria, (ii) Tanzania, (iii) India and (iv) Pakistan in the most recent year for which figures are available. [289258]
Mr. Michael Foster: The UK is spending £8.5 billion over the period 2006-07 to 2015-16 in support of education in developing countries. As the bulk of our support and engagement is provided through direct budget support and sector wide approaches, we are unable to put a specific global figure on the amount of money spent directly on disabled children. However, we encourage partner governments to ensure that their monitoring mechanisms can track the effects of national education sector spending on the most vulnerable children, including disabled children.
The estimated spend on projects where disability is either directly targeted or mainstreamed in the four countries listed is:
India—The DFID supported Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), National Education for All Programme, has helped reach over 1 million children with special needs since 2005-06. The programme has spent over £78 million of which it is estimated approximately £2.3 million supported special needs children.
Nigeria—DFID provides support to a set of State level sector programmes including education sector support through the Education Sector Support Programme. DFID Nigeria is increasing its support from £100 million in 2008-09 to £140 million in 2010-11. The increased allocation is being used to expand support to selected partner states for health and education over the next three years.
Pakistan—We do not have any ongoing or pipeline programmes that specifically target the disabled. Our support is mainly provided through sector budgets in support of provincial plans, within which issues relating to provision for disabled children is made.
Tanzania—DFID's support in Tanzania is aligned with the Government of Tanzania National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty. In 2007-08 DFID provided £105 million as budget support of which over £26 million went to the education sector. Of this, we estimate that more than £66,000 went on school places for disabled children.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the effects of reductions in levels of global trade on the gross domestic product of (a) small vulnerable economies, (b) least developed countries and (c) small island states. [289859]
Mr. Thomas: Since the onset of the global financial crisis, the Department for International Development (DFID) has been closely tracking its impact on developing countries. The crisis and the subsequent reductions in global trade have had a significant effect on developing countries and a reduction in projected growth rates is predicted across the board. Our initial assessments have indicated that commodity exporting countries with non-diversified economies have seen the greatest impact.
A dedicated team has been set up to co-ordinate and initiate work across the Department to assess trade-related and other impacts of the global slowdown on low-income countries. More broadly DFID is in close contact with colleagues across Whitehall and overseas, in other Governments, the international financial institutions, and research institutions to analyse impacts of the crisis and plan further effective responses. DFID has commissioned several pieces of research examining trade-related impacts which have been made publicly available:
“The implication of the global financial crisis for developing countries’ export volumes and values”
http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/details.asp?id=3410&title= global-financial-crisis-developing-countries-export-volumes-trade
“Individual Country Reports of 10 selected Low Income Countries”
http://www.odi.org.uk/projects/details.asp?id=1041&title= global-financial-crisis-developing-countries
“Assessing the Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on World Prices and Trade in Developing Countries”
http://www.ids.ac.uk/index.cfm?objectid=C3AB945D-9C12-586B-549FE1FC1F72E600
“Are Exporters in Africa Facing Reduced Availability of Trade Finance?”
http://www.ids.ac.uk/index.cfm?objectid=C369D2D2-AEE3-EB77-A7847EA6F6FBF447
12 Oct 2009 : Column 83W—continued
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department spent promoting women's rights in developing countries in each of the last 12 months. [290422]
Mr. Michael Foster: Promoting gender equality and women's rights is a key component of the UK Government's international development policy. It is not therefore possible to disaggregate a precise figure for total expenditure on promoting women's rights.
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when he last discussed the commitment made at the G20 London Summit to develop proposals by end 2009, to make it easier for developing countries to secure the benefits of a new co-operative tax environment with the Chancellor of the Exchequer; what progress has been made in producing such proposals; and if he will make a statement [291400]
Mr. Thomas: The Secretary of State met the Chancellor of the Exchequer in early September as part of ongoing preparations for the autumn G20 meetings to discuss progress on G20 commitments and priorities for the next leaders' meeting.
Since the London Summit positive progress has been made to deliver on the commitment to create a new co-operative tax environment for developing countries. The 1-2 September meeting of the OECD Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes included developing country issues. Participants agreed that developing countries will have access to membership of the Global Forum, and participate on an equal footing with OECD members. They also noted progress on projects to develop a multilateral mechanism for tax information exchange and agreed to submit a report about how this would work to the G20 Finance Ministers meeting in November. The Communiqué from the September G20 Finance Ministers meeting reaffirmed support for this commitment. I also refer the hon. Member to the statement made on this matter by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on Wednesday 9 September 2009, Official Report, column 135WS.
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent steps his Department has taken to encourage the use of Fairtrade schemes (a) in the UK and (b) abroad. [292021]
Mr. Thomas: In the UK, we have provided funding to Fairtrade Foundation UK, for projects ranging from development and expansion of Fairtrade certification and markets, to awareness-raising campaigns.
Internationally, we are currently delivering on a £1.2 million commitment to Fairtrade Labelling Organisations International (FLO)—the apex organisation of global Fairtrade—for its work to broaden and deepen Fairtrade’s impact.
On 10 October we announced an additional commitment to FLO of £12 million, over four years. This funding will support their work, together with the Fairtrade Foundation UK and other national labelling organisations, to double the number of producers selling on Fairtrade terms, and triple global retail sales to some £9 billion per annum by 2013.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department spent in (a) India and (b) China in the last 12 months for which figures are available. [292506]
Mr. Michael Foster: Information on the Department for International Development's (DFID) aid to all developing countries in 2008-09 was published in its Annual Report and Accounts, a copy of which is available in the Library. In 2008-09 total DFID bilateral aid to India was £297 million; total DFID bilateral aid to China was £40 million.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department plans to spend on promoting International Women’s Day 2010. [290377]
Mr. Michael Foster: We do not, at this stage, have firm plans on how we will mark International Women’s Day in March 2010. Our approach is likely to be similar to that taken this year, which was outlined in the answer which I gave to the hon. Member on 30 June 2009, Official Report, column 222W.
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment his Department has made of food shortages in Kenya; and if he will make a statement. [291656]
Mr. Thomas: The Department for International Development (DFID) accepts the United Nations (UN) agencies and the Government of Kenya’s recent assessment of the current food shortages in Kenya. This shows that domestic production of the staple, maize, is 30 per cent. less than normal due to the drought this year. Even with additional imports of food by the private sector, 9.9 million people face food insecurity.
DFID has already provided £7.9 million this year to support general food relief through the World Food Programme, and targeted relief for acutely malnourished children through international non-governmental agencies. On 2 October we announced an additional £5 million allocation to help those most in need. We are also pressing the Government of Kenya to do all it can to respond to the needs of its people, and in the longer-term to address the root causes of Kenya’s chronic food insecurity.
Mr. Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will place in the Library a copy of each of his Department's documents relating to the information support to education infrastructure management unit project in Malawi. [292155]
Mr. Thomas: The Department for International Development (DFID) is currently providing funds to the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology in Malawi for the running costs of their Educational Infrastructure Management Unit (EIMU). Details of all DFID's currently active projects, including this "Support to EIMU" in Malawi, are now made widely available through the Project Information database on the DFID website:
http://projects.dfid.gov.uk
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what aid his Department has provided to the Maldives for development in each year since 1997; how much it plans to provide in 2009-10; and if he will make a statement. [289613]
Mr. Michael Foster: Full details of the UK development expenditure in the Maldives are contained in the Department for International Development (DFID) publication ‘Statistics on International Development’. This publication is available from the Library and online at
www.dfid.gov.uk.
Relevant figures are reproduced in the following table.
DFID does not have any plans to spend directly in the Maldives in 2009-10; however some of DFID’s contributions to multilateral organisations may be spent there.
| UK gross public expenditure on development in the Maldives, 1997-98 to 2008-09 | |||
| £000 | |||
| DFID bilateral expenditure | Other UK official sources bilateral expenditure | UK imputed multilateral shares | |
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the effects on progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals of the global economic downturn. [289858]
Mr. Thomas: The Department for International Development (DFID) has been following events closely but the full economic and social impacts will not be known for some time. Therefore making an assessment of the impact of the crisis on the millennium development goals (MDGs) is extremely difficult and indicative at best. Based on revised growth forecasts, we estimate that up to 90 million more people will be living in extreme poverty by 2010 as a result of the crisis than previously anticipated. This is expected to delay the achievement of MDG1—eradicate extreme poverty and hunger—by up to three years. Other goals, such as increased educational enrolment and reduced child mortality, are also likely to be affected due to falling household incomes, but the severity of such effects depend on government policy in the particular developing country.
The recent White Paper “Eliminating World Poverty: Building our Common Future” emphasises DFID’s commitment to supporting poor people through the global economic crisis. It is available in the Library of the House and on the DFID website:
www.dfid.gov.uk
Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development to which countries his Department has provided aid for the purposes of (a) adapting to climate change and (b) mitigating the effects of climate change. [292451]
Mr. Thomas: The Department for International Development (DFID) has programmes tackling climate change in many of the countries in which we work, but we do not categorise aid according to adaptation or mitigation activities.
DFID records whether a programme is contributing to the Departmental Strategic Objective 2 'to promote climate change mitigation and adaptation measures and ensure environmental sustainability' and also if the programme is targeting climate change. DFID currently has over 40 live programmes tackling climate change in many countries including India, Bangladesh, Ghana, Nepal and Zambia.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funding his Department has provided for community-based forestry projects that support the land rights of forest communities in the last 12 months. [292494]
Mr. Michael Foster: In the last 12 months the Department for International Development (DFID) has provided funding for the following four initiatives that support the land rights of forest communities: two projects that support the land rights of forest communities in the Congo Basin; the Livelihoods and Forestry Programme (LFP) of Nepal; and a programme of work by the Rights and Resources Initiative (RRI). The total expenditure on these initiatives over the last 12 months is £4,462,000.
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what account his Department takes of a country's human rights record when granting international aid. [292309]
Mr. Michael Foster: Human rights principles underpin the UK Government's aid to developing countries. The policy of the Department for International Development (DFID) is to consider a country's human rights record when deciding whether to provide bi-lateral aid. DFID assesses a country's human rights record in its three yearly 'Country Governance Analysis'. This provides an analysis of the human rights situation in each country and is used in developing the Country Plan and the Development Partnership Agreement.
This approach is reinforced by the Conditionality Policy, which bases UK aid partnerships on shared commitments to respect human rights, to poverty reduction and to good financial management. Where a country government do not share these commitments, UK aid can still be provided to poor people through other routes such as multi-lateral agencies and civil society. Where a partner government have breached their commitment to human rights, UK aid to the government may be suspended, as it was in Kenya and Pakistan in 2007-08.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department has spent on humanitarian projects in Somaliland in the last 12 months. [290489]
Mr. Thomas: The Department for International Development (DFID) has not funded any humanitarian projects in Somaliland in the last 12 months. During this period we have committed approximately £25 million to UN agencies, international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for their humanitarian work in South-Central Somalia, reflecting the greater need there. DFID has an active development programme in Somaliland, on which almost £6 million was spent in 2008-09.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the humanitarian effects of the conflict in Sri Lanka. [291527]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) declared victory over the LITE in May 2009. Approximately 270,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) remain in camps in the north and east of the country. Conditions in the camps are basic but have improved as the needs for shelter, food, water and medicine are gradually being met. We remain concerned about high malnutrition levels among sections of the IDP population, the lack of freedom of movement and the restrictions put on activities such as registration of the population and the reunification of families. Recent flooding in the camps following heavy rain highlights the importance of safely returning as many people as possible to their homes before the monsoon season. The Department for International Development (DFID), together with the international community, is participating in contingency planning to mitigate against its effect on the camps.
DFID has allocated £3 million to help the returns process and has recently agreed a grant of £0.5 million to Mine Action Group (MAG) to contribute towards de-mining activities in the Vanni.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 89W—continued
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to provide humanitarian assistance to those held in internment camps in Sri Lanka. [291525]
Mr. Michael Foster: The conventional conflict between the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and LTTE ended in May 2009. Approximately 270,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) continue to remain in camps in the north and east of Sri Lanka. Since September 2008, the Department for International Development (DFID) has allocated £12.5 million of humanitarian aid to Sri Lanka. This has supported impartial organisations such as the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to undertake both child protection and vaccination campaigns in the IDP camps, as well as the International Office of Migration (IOM) to build, equip and supply health clinics in the camps. We are pressing for the IDPs to be treated in accordance with accepted international standards and guidelines and for the safe return of the IDPs from the camps to their homes as soon as possible.
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when he expects to reply to question 288181, on CDC, tabled on 15 July 2009. [290224]
Mr. Michael Foster: A response to question 288181 was provided on 21 July 2009, Official Report, column 1243W.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much development aid has been provided by his Department to each programme in Zimbabwe in each of the last three years. [292171]
Mr. Thomas: Summary information on the Department for International Development’s (DFID) aid to Zimbabwe in each of the last three years was published in annex A of DFID’s 2008-09 annual report and resource accounts in July, a copy of which is available in the Library. Information on all individual DFID-funded projects is available via the project information database on our website at:
www.dfid.gov.uk
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the merits of amending the Penalty Notice for Disorder operational guidance issued to police to ensure that such notices are only issued in police stations; and if he will make a statement. [291982]
Mr. Straw: There are significant advantages to issue on the street in appropriate circumstances: officers do not need to return to the police station in order to process the matter and they are able to return to patrol much more quickly, resulting in efficiency savings and a better service to the public. In 2007, 115,939 PNDs were issued in a police station and 91,605 on the street.
The operational guidance to the police sets out the criteria which should be considered by officers in deciding where to issue a PND. For example, a ticket must not be issued to a suspect who is drunk, which means that issue will take place in a police station once the individual has sobered up.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners have been released early into bail hostels since 1997; and how many such prisoners have subsequently absconded from bail hostels. [290105]
Mr. Straw: For the purposes of this answer, we are interpreting "released early" as "released from prison on licence in accordance with the law".
Data about offenders released into approved premises (formerly known as bail/probation hostels) has been collected centrally only since April 2004, from information supplied by individual approved premises. We estimate that 25,935 offenders released on licence were admitted into APs between April 2004 and March 2009.
Figures about residents who have absconded from an approved premises and are still at large on the final day of each month have been collected only since April 2006, with additional figures collected since April 2008 for those residents who have absconded and are known to have been recalled to prison during the month. Neither of these figures is broken down by resident type, and so will include residents who are on bail or serving a community sentence. In addition, our figures do not separately record absconded residents who are arrested at a later date, so there may be some double counting.
Between April 2006 and March 2009, a total of 1,251 residents absconded and were believed still to be at large at the end of the month in question. In addition, between April 2008 and March 2009 1,023 residents absconded and were recalled to prison.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prison staff have been suspended from HM Prison Belmarsh in each of the last 60 days; for what reason each member of staff was suspended; and how many prison staff are working at the prison. [292396]
Maria Eagle: Six members of staff have been suspended at HMP Belmarsh in the last 60 days while some aspect of their conduct is under investigation. These investigations are still ongoing and as such it would not be appropriate to release any other information that might serve to identify individual members of staff. The National Offender Management Service has a responsibility to ensure that the individuals concerned are treated fairly and reasonably, and that their cases are not subject to discussion and formulation of views in advance of full consideration of the evidence. As of 7 October 2009 there were 940 staff working at HMP Belmarsh.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the Prime Minister’s statement of 10 June 2009, Official Report, columns 795-99, on constitutional renewal, when the Government will set out its proposals for taking forward the debate on electoral reform. [288683]
Mr. Wills: On 29 September, the Prime Minister made a commitment to hold a referendum early in the next Parliament on changing the current voting system for the House of Commons to the Alternative Vote system.
Mr. Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many children commenced a period of definition on the juvenile secure estate (a) on remand and (b) after sentencing for (i) less than one month, (ii) less than six months, (iii) less than one year, (iv) less than three years and (v) more than three years in each of the last five years. [287687]
Maria Eagle: The statistics collected by the Youth Justice Board record the number of occasions on which young people have entered custody, rather than the number of individual young people who have begun a period in custody. (These figures are different because a young person may experience more than one period in custody.) These figures, in relation to the period and categories for which information has been requested, are set out in the following table.
The figures have been supplied by the Youth Justice Board and have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large-scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing and may be subject to change over time.
| Time spent in custody in the secure estate for children and young people | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects to announce the conclusions of his review into the operation of conditional fee agreements following the end of the consultation contained in paper CP4/09, Controlling costs in defamation proceedings. [292084]
Bridget Prentice: We are not currently undertaking a review into the operation of conditional fee agreements.
The consultation paper CP4/09 “Controlling costs in defamation proceedings” proposed a number of specific measures aimed at controlling the costs of defamation and some other publication related proceedings.
I have made a written ministerial statement today confirming that the response to that consultation paper was issued on 24 September 2009. Copies of the response paper have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses. The paper is also available on the Ministry of Justice website at:
www.justice.gsi.gov.uk
Copies have also been made available in the Vote Office and the Printed Paper Office.
Lord Justice Jackson has been appointed by the Master of the Rolls to undertake a review of the rules and principles governing the costs of civil litigation. He is considering the operation of conditional fee agreements as part of this review. Ministers will consider the review’s recommendations when they are available.
Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects to publish the responses received to the consultation paper CP4/09, Controlling costs in defamation proceedings. [292088]
Bridget Prentice: I have made a written ministerial statement today confirming that the response to the consultation paper “Controlling costs in defamation proceedings” CP4/09 was issued on 24 September 2009.
Copies of the response paper have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses. The paper is also available on the Ministry of Justice website at:
www.justice.gsi.gov.uk
Copies have also been made available in the Vote Office and the Printed Paper Office.
Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what reports he has received of the outcome of the second stage of the review by Sir Rupert Jackson of the (a) costs of litigation and (b) operation of conditional fee agreements in England and Wales; and when he expects the (i) first draft and (ii) final draft of Sir Rupert’s report to be available. [292090]
Bridget Prentice: Lord Justice Jackson was appointed by the Master of the Rolls in January 2009 to lead a fundamental review of the rules and principles governing the costs of civil litigation. Ministers have received a copy of the preliminary report published on the 8 May 2009. Lord Justice Jackson has indicated that his final report will be delivered to the Master of the Rolls by the 31 December 2009 and Ministers expect to receive a copy of the report early in the New Year.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent discussions he has had on the effectiveness of the high visibility payback scheme. [287968]
Mr. Straw: Ministers and senior officials hold regular reviews with departmental leads to ensure that the policy is being implemented consistently in all probation areas. Community Payback was launched in November 2005 to promote public awareness and confidence in the unpaid work community sentence. To increase visibility, distinctive clothing in the form of orange high visibility jackets has been required to be worn by offenders on most work sites, which are in view of the public, since December 2008. The use of distinctive clothing has been monitored. During the quarter April to June 2009 over one million hours of Community Payback were undertaken by offenders wearing distinctive clothing. If the hon. Member has specific concerns I would be glad to hear from him.
A Home Office surveys show that public awareness of Community Payback has increased from 49 per cent. in November 2008 to 74 per cent. in April 2009.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people who had been placed on the high visibility payback scheme were rearrested within three months of participating on the scheme since its inception. [287970]
Mr. Straw: Information is unavailable relating to the re-arrest of offenders who have been required to wear distinctive high visibility clothing when undertaking Community Payback sentences.
The most recent information available relating to reoffending by adults is for those sentenced during the first three months of 2007. Offenders sentenced to Community Payback (unpaid work) during this period had a 25.8 per cent. rate of reoffending. This is the lowest rate of reoffending of the top five commonly used community orders, though it may only reflect the characteristics of offenders sentenced to Community Payback rather than simply the effectiveness of Community Payback in reducing the likelihood of reoffending.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 94W—continued
Natascha Engel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent guidance his Department has issued to young offender institutions on the prohibition on corporal punishment in the juvenile secure estate. [288439]
Maria Eagle: The Ministry of Justice has not issued any recent guidance to young offender institutions on the prohibition of corporal punishment in the Young People’s secure estate.
Corporal punishment in prisons was abolished under Section 65 of the Criminal Justice Act 1967. This section of the Act remains in force.
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many women have been convicted for each offence involving violence against the person in each of the last 10 years. [291774]
Claire Ward: Information showing the number of females found guilty at all courts for offences of violence against the person by offence, in England and Wales, from 1998 to 2007 (latest available) is shown in the following table. Data for 2008 will be available towards the end of 2009.
| Number of females found guilty at all courts for offences of violence against the person by offence, 1998 to 2007( 1, 2) , England and Wales | ||||||||||
| Offence | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 |
|
Causing death by dangerous driving while under the influence of drink or drugs | ||||||||||
|
Causing or allowing the death of a child or vulnerable person | ||||||||||
|
Total indictable and summary offences of violence against the person | ||||||||||
| (1) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Source: Office for Criminal Justice Reform, Evidence and Analysis Unit. | ||||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 96W—continued
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate has been made of the costs incurred under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme in relation to injuries and deaths caused by uninsured drivers in the latest period for which figures are available. [289963]
Claire Ward: Injuries or deaths caused by drivers, uninsured or otherwise, are not covered by the terms of the criminal injuries compensation scheme (CICS), except where the driver used the vehicle deliberately to inflict, or to attempt to inflict, injury. Otherwise, the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (which administers the CICS) refers victims of road traffic incidents to the Motor Insurers’ Bureau, an industry-sponsored body which can compensate victims of uninsured drivers.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prosecutions there have been for offences related to riding a bicycle on the pavement in each police force area in the last year for which figures are available. [289246]
Claire Ward: Information showing the number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for riding a pedal cycle on a footpath, England and Wales, broken down by police force area, in 2007 (latest available) is shown in the table.
| Number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for “riding a pedal cycle on a footpath” under section 72 of the 1835 Highway Act, in England and Wales, broken down by police force area, 2007( 1, 2, 3) | |
| Force | Proceeded against |
| (1) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) Where a police force area is not listed in the table, nil data is recorded. Source: Evidence and Analysis Unit—Office for Criminal Justice Reform | |
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the evidence submitted by the Information Commissioner’s Office to the Culture, Media and Sport Committee in its inquiry into self-regulation of the press, which journalists received data supplied by Hampshire-based private investigators under Operations Glade and Motorman. [289726]
Mr. Wills: In 2006, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) carried out an investigation into data protection offences under Operation Motorman. This investigation led to a further investigation by the Metropolitan Police Service under Operation Glade.
The ICO published two special reports to Parliament, ‘What Price Privacy?’ and ‘What Price Privacy Now?’, which relate to these investigations but did not name the journalists involved. Under Section 59 of the Data Protection Act (DPA) 1998, the Information Commissioner is generally prohibited from disclosing information obtained by him under the provisions of the DPA which relates to an identifiable individual or business and has not previously been made publicly available, for example, names of journalists or the organisations they work for.
This information has been supplied by the ICO.
Harry Cohen:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent discussions he has had with the Information Commissioner on the outcomes of Operation Motorman and related investigations and its
findings relating to data illegally obtained from British Telecom, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency and the Police National Computer; and if he will make a statement. [289729]
Mr. Wills: The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) presented two special reports to Parliament in 2006 about the illegal trade in personal information.
Although there have been no recent discussions between the Secretary of State for Justice and the Information Commissioner on this subject, the Ministry of Justice and the ICO work closely together to ensure that all data controllers understand their obligations under the Data Protection Act 1998.
The Government are currently considering whether now is the appropriate time to consult on introducing custodial sentences for the knowing or reckless misuse of personal data.
Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his policy is on the means by which bailiffs identify themselves on the doorstep; and if he will make a statement. [289253]
Bridget Prentice: Bailiff powers and their conduct is a sensitive and complex issue and has been the subject of considerable assessment, debate and consultation over the last 10 years.
The National Standards for Enforcement Agents published in 2002 by the then Lord Chancellor’s Department states,
“Enforcement agents should always produce relevant identification on request, such as a badge or ID card, together with a written authorisation to act on behalf of the creditor.”
The guidance is not a legally binding document and does not replace local agreements, existing agency codes of practice or legislation; rather it sets out what the Ministry, those in the industry and some major users regard as minimum standards.
The Government announced, on 17 March 2009, measures to strengthen regulation of the enforcement industry that will raise standards of professionalism within the industry and give the public greater confidence in it. The regulatory framework will include a mandatory code of conduct that will address the means by which enforcement agents identify themselves on the doorstep.
A forthcoming consultation paper will set out the Government’s intentions for a package of measures which will address concerns that have been raised about the behaviour of bailiffs and proposals for the regulation of the bailiff industry. The intention is to commence this consultation exercise in January 2010 with a view to implementing the changes in April 2012.
Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many bailiffs were on the online bailiff register on the latest date for which figures are available. [289257]
Bridget Prentice: As at 1 October 2009, there were 1,679 certificated bailiffs on the HMCS online certificated bailiff register.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department spent on newspaper advertising by publication in the latest year for which figures are available. [289477]
Mr. Straw: The Ministry of Justice does not record information centrally at a level of detail that would allow for the specific identification of advertising expenditure by publication. Such information is held locally by courts, prisons and probation boards throughout England and Wales and could be collated only at disproportionate cost. The vast majority of advertising expenditure incurred by the Ministry, however, relates to staff recruitment.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department has spent on consultants to assist Ministers of his Department in their parliamentary duties in the last 12 months. [289202]
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent estimate he has made of the error rate in each database run by (a) his Department and (b) its agencies. [291834]
Mr. Wills: The Ministry of Justice takes its responsibilities for maintaining the integrity of the data stored on its databases very seriously. Although there is no process for summarising the number of inaccurate records, there are systems in place to maximise the accuracy of the data held on the relevant systems. Any inaccurate records that are found on the system are corrected as soon as they are identified.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) mobile telephones, (b) Blackberrys and (c) laptop computers were issued to staff of his Department in each of the last five years; and how many of these were issued to (i) new staff and (ii) existing staff following (A) loss and (B) theft of the previous device. [290246]
Mr. Wills: Departmental mobile telephones, BlackBerrys and laptops are provided through service contracts with external suppliers. They are usually allocated from a central pool and returned to the pool for re-allocation when no longer required.
The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) was established in May 2007. Numbers of BlackBerry, laptop and mobile telephone users for 2007-08 and 2008-09 are given as follows:
| Number | |
Figures for BlackBerry and laptop users are taken from the Department’s central records which cover MOJ headquarters and main business areas, including Her Majesty’s Courts Service (HMCS) and the Tribunals Service. The figures for mobile phone users are for MOJ headquarters only. Larger business areas, including HMCS and the Tribunals Service, manage mobile telephone provision locally and these figures could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
In addition, numbers for the National Offender Management Service, taken from their central records are as follows:
| Average laptop volumes | Average BlackBerry volumes | Average mobile telephone volumes | |
It would require an extensive data gathering exercise to identify the further detailed information requested. This could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what flexi-time arrangements were available to staff within the Department in each of the last five years; and how many staff participated in such arrangements in each such year. [290252]
Mr. Wills: In the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), all staff may apply for flexible working options. For the past five years, these options have included flexi-time, compressed hours, reduced hours, job-share and job split, part year, annualised hours, home working and remote working.
In NOMS, flexible working options are available to staff in administrative, professional and technological, psychological, secretarial and office support grades, and grade E managers and below. For the past five years, flexible working options have included job-sharing and part-time hours.
Managers consider all requests to work flexibly, taking into consideration the needs of the business and the individual. Many requests for flexible working may be made informally between managers and staff and therefore will not be formally recorded. Information concerning how many staff participate in such arrangements is not collated centrally and could not be provided without incurring disproportionate cost.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 100W—continued
Mr. Watson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009, Official Report, column 84W, on departmental internet, what the (a)
names and (b) versions are of the web browsers used on the (i) desktop machines and (ii) laptop computers used by his Department's (A) Permanent Secretary, (B) chief information officer, (C) head of communications and (D) head of finance. [288998]
Mr. Wills: All the named post holders have Internet Explorer version 7 on their desktop or laptop computers.
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what timescale he has set for completion of his Department’s proposed accommodation relocation and rationalisation project; which potential locations have been shortlisted; whether he proposes to build the proposed office accommodation under a private finance initiative scheme; and if he will make a statement. [289475]
Mr. Straw: The Ministry of Justice is developing a feasibility study and business case for potentially establishing a national justice centre hub for HQ functions that do not need to be based in central London.
The long-term objective is to reduce the high cost London presence and to focus London based activity to business critical requirements of supporting Ministers and conducting core strategic policymaking.
This is part of a five year estates plan and excludes prisons, courts, tribunals and other operational services which are included in separate operational estate strategies.
A thorough process is being undertaken and a set of criteria is currently being established with the close involvement of both the Office of Government Commerce and the Department for Communities and Local Government.
The criteria are wide ranging covering not only value for money considerations but also the socioeconomic impacts, local and regional partnerships, labour market and career opportunities, transport links and sustainability, health and social factors as well as others.
A list of potential locations has not yet been established and no decisions have been made about the scale, staffing or financial arrangements of any potential future locations.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the average length of employment of staff in his Department at each civil service pay band. [290248]
Mr. Wills: The average length of service for each responsibility level within MoJ, including the public sector Prison Service and National Offender Management Service Headquarters (NOMS) is shown in the following table.
The current MoJ (excluding NOMS) pay band structure was introduced on 1 August 2007, as part of the pay deal. This resulted in the amalgamation of Grade 6s and 7s. As a result of this change, it is not possible to report separately on these grades.
| Ministry of Justice length of service as at 31 July 2009 | |
| Responsibility level | Average length of service (years) |
| Source: Oracle HR systems (NOMS + MoJ HQ) | |
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many hours were worked by each special adviser in his Department in each week between 8 June 2009 to 3 July 2009. [289903]
Mr. Straw: As working for me as a Special Adviser is, I am told, pure pleasure and stress free, my Special Advisers work exceptionally long hours, often at weekends and late into the evening without complaint, and have not therefore felt the need which they otherwise might to complete timesheets to show that I was sweating their labour.
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice for what non-departmental public bodies his Department is responsible; and what the budget of each was in each of the last three years. [289904]
Mr. Straw: The Ministry of Justice (MOJ)’s Resource Accounts 2008-09 stated that for the year ended 31 March 2009, the MOJ was responsible for nine executive non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs). Due to Machinery of Government changes, the MOJ has not been responsible for all of these nine NDPBs during the last three years. Advisory NDPBs have not been included in this answer as the data are not readily available centrally. Please see the link below for further information about MOJ sponsored bodies, correct as of March 2009 at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/docs/sponsored-bodies-2009-revised.pdf
The following table shows the cash grant paid to each executive NDPB by MOJ for 2009-10 and the two previous years(1):
| £ Million | |||
| NDPB | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 |
| (1) Figures are taken from the Main Estimate of each respective year. 2007-08 figures are for the Department for Constitutional Affairs as opposed to the Ministry of Justice. (2) The source of funding to the Office for Legal Complaints and Legal Services Board is a levy upon the legal industry as per Legal Services Act 2007 and so MOJ funding will be reimbursed. | |||
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many properties owned by his Department were liable for payment of (a) business rates and (b) empty property rates in each of the last five years; and what the total rates liability was in each year. [290253]
Mr. Straw: There are four properties owned by Ministry of Justice that were liable for business rates in each of the last five years. None of these properties qualified for empty property rates.
The total rates bill for these properties over the last five years is as follows:
| (£) | ||||
| Gwydyr House, 65 Whitehall, SWIA 2NP | Abell House, John Islip Street, London SWIP 4LH | Cleland House, Page St, London, SWIP 4LN | Ashley House, Monck St, London, SWIP 2BQ | |
Figures from the estate of Her Majesty's Court Service and the National Offender Management Service are not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many staff took paternity leave from his Department in each of the last five years; and what the average duration of such leave was. [290251]
Mr. Wills: The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) allows new fathers to take up to 10 working days paternity leave providing they meet the qualifying criteria including continuous employment for at least 26 weeks.
Information from 2006-07 to present is shown in the following table but it should be noted the data is recorded using calendar days and cannot be converted to working days. Earlier figures were not held centrally.
| Annual paternity statistics for Ministry of Justice (excluding National Offender Management Service (NOMS)) | ||
| Number of staff | Average number of days (calendar) | |
The information requested for the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) is not held centrally and to obtain it would entail manually examining large numbers of individual files at a disproportionate cost.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department spent on Royal Mail services in each of the last five years. [288792]
Mr. Straw: As the Ministry of Justice was created on 9 May 2007 information is available only for the last two financial years:
| £ | ||
| 2008-09 | 2007-08 | |
| (1) In 2007-08, expenditure by certain parts of the Department—the Office of Criminal Justice Reform in Ministry of Justice headquarters, and headquarters functions within the current NOMS agency—were recorded on the Home Office’s accounting system, reflecting the way functions were organised prior to 9 May 2007. Details of this expenditure could be obtained only from Home Office systems at disproportionate cost. The 2007-08 NOMS figure reflects expenditure by the former HM Prison Service agency only. | ||
In addition to this factor, the increase in expenditure reflects increases in postal charges from April 2008 and a greater use of tracked services including recorded post and courier services, reflecting an increased concern for data security when posting information.
All expenditure with the Royal Mail is in line with the principles set out in HM Treasury’s manual “Managing Public Money”, and the Treasury handbook on “Propriety and Regularity”.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 104W—continued
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289736]
Mr. Wills:
I am the Minister with responsibility for value for money in the Ministry of Justice (MOJ). The MOJ is committed to reforming and improving public
services for the citizen and there are a number of teams across the department that are working closely with colleagues in the centre of Government to achieve this. The MOJ’s Performance and Efficiency Programme (PEP) was set up to ensure the department delivers efficiencies of over £1 billion in the three years running up to March 2011. This programme is supported by a small PEP team which helps coordinate the work of the wider department.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of his Department’s waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289672]
Mr. Wills: The Ministry of Justice was created in May 2007. This answer gives the figure for 2007-08 which is the latest period for which figures are available.
The proportion of waste the Ministry of Justice recycled in 2007-08 was 15,635.6 tonnes and the percentage recycled was 22 per cent. This information was published in the seventh annual “Sustainable Development in Government” Report (SDiG) at:
http://www.sd-commission.org.uk/publications.php?id=853
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many external training courses were attended by staff of his Department in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of attendance on each such course. [289704]
Mr. Wills: In the 12 month period from 1 September 2008 to 31 August 2009 records show that 2,500 Ministry of Justice staff attended external courses. This figure excludes the National Offender Management Service, as to obtain this information would involve identifying and contacting sources of information in many different locations at a disproportionate cost. Responsibility for decisions on training rest with line managers, again there is no central collation of management information on the cost of attendance of these courses and this information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department and its predecessors spent on (a) car hire, (b) train travel, (c) air travel and (d) hotels for (i) Ministers and (ii) staff in his Department in each of the last five years. [289977]
Mr. Straw: All travel by Ministers is undertaken in accordance with the ministerial code. Since 1999, the Cabinet Office has published a list of all overseas travel over £500 undertaken by Ministers. Information for the financial year 2008-09 was published on 16 July 2009 and can be viewed at:
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/propriety_and_ethics/ministers/travel_gifts.aspx
All travel and hotel booking by Ministry of Justice staff members is completed in line with the published
rules for official travel and subsistence within the staff handbook. The rules are in accordance with the guidelines set out in the Civil Service Management Code.
It is not possible to identify other expenditure on travel and hotels incurred specifically by Ministers without incurring the disproportionate costs as a significant proportion of hotel bookings, air travel, train travel and car hire are arranged through travel management companies employed by the Ministry to obtain best value for money options. Expenditure may also be incurred directly by staff and reimbursed through an expense claim process or charged to a Government Procurement Card (GPC). The GPC is a credit card operated by Barclays bank designed to limit transaction processing costs for low value, ad-hoc expenses. Expense claim records and log books detailing expenditure on the GPC card are held locally across the organisation, including by courts and prisons across the country. Examination and analysis of local records to identify amounts relating specifically to hotels, air travel, train travel and car hire for the last five years would incur disproportionate cost.
Travel and hotel costs incurred by Directors General and the Permanent Secretary within the Ministry in 2008-09 are published on the Ministry's website at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/moj-business-costs-0809.htm
Director Generals and Permanent Secretary costs have also been published quarterly on the website since July 2009.
The annual departmental resource accounts disclose expenditure on “travel, subsistence and hospitality” in notes 10 (administration expenditure) and 11 (programme expenditure). Resource accounts were published by the Ministry of Justice for 2007-08 and 2008-09 and prior to that by the Ministry's predecessor, the Department for Constitutional Affairs. All published accounts can be found at:
http://www.official-documents.gov.uk/
Analysis of published totals to identify amounts relating specifically to hotels, air travel, train travel and car hire for the last five years would incur disproportionate cost. The majority of expenditure is recorded within the Ministry's accounting records against a general “travel and subsistence” category which includes, in addition, subsistence allowances where, for example, staff are required to stay away from home overnight.
The information that is held under the “travel and subsistence” category in the accounts includes non-civil servants, for example, judiciary and probation personnel. To calculate these costs, it would be necessary for the central procurement team to trawl manual records for the last five years. This is not possible since the procurement contracts have changed during this period as have the structure of the Department following Machinery of Government Changes.
Officials are now working to improve significantly the data held in this area.
Mr. Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many convictions there were for the offence of driving without insurance in each of the last five years. [289333]
Claire Ward: The number of findings of guilt for using a motor vehicle uninsured against third party risks in England and Wales from 2003 to 2007 is shown in the following table.
An amendment to the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988, s. 143 made driving a motor vehicle while uninsured against third party risks a fixed penalty offence as from 1 June 2003. Initially, offenders are, when appropriate, offered a £200 fixed penalty; this can be increased to a maximum of £5,000 if the matter goes to court.
| Number of findings of guilt for using a motor vehicle uninsured against third party risks at all courts, England and Wales, 2003 to 2007( 1,2,3) | |
| Proceeded against | |
| (1) Includes offences under the Road Traffic Act 1988 s. 143 (2). (2) It is known that for some police force areas the reporting of court proceedings, in particular those relating to summary motoring offences, may be less than complete. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Source: Office for Criminal Justice Reform—Evidence and Analysis unit. | |
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to encourage people to complete and return electoral registration forms. [291469]
Mr. Wills: Encouraging people to complete and return electoral registration forms is the responsibility of electoral registration officers (EROs), in local authorities, under a duty placed on them by section 9 of the Electoral Administration Act 2006 (EA Act), which requires them to take all necessary steps to maintain the electoral register, including sending the canvass form more than once, inspecting such records that the ERO is allowed to inspect, and making house to house inquiries.
The EA Act also provided for the Electoral Commission to introduce a performance standards framework for EROs. The standards provide a framework within which the performance of EROs in registering people can be assessed, and targeted work undertaken to drive up performance where necessary. The first assessments against these standards were published on 21 April 2009 and are available on the Commission’s website.
The Government also established a funding mechanism to support novel and innovative projects and activities which EROs and returning officers take forward in pursuance of their duty, under section 69 of the EA Act to encourage electoral participation. Through this, funding has been made available for a range of schemes to support registration.
In addition, the Government recently legislated in the Political Parties and Elections Act 2009 for the phased implementation of Individual Registration (IR) in Great Britain. This will be supported by a programme of work to drive up registration rates in Great Britain, enhancing both the comprehensiveness and accuracy of the electoral registers.
This programme will include: data matching pilots between EROs and local authorities to support registration; and secondary legislation to support registration amongst service voters, enhance data sharing in areas where there are two tier local authorities, and clarify that the section 9 duty applies all year round. The Government have also initiated a registration poster campaign in Citizens Advice Bureaux, the network of HM courts in England, Wales and Scotland and Jobcentre Plus offices.
Figures released by the Office for National Statistics show that during the last three years registration rates continued to rise. As of 1 December 2008 the number of UK parliamentary electors rose to 45.2 million.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many times his Department has been taken to an employment tribunal in each of the last five years; what the primary reason cited in each case was; and in how many cases the tribunal found in favour of (a) the employee and (b) his Department. [290249]
Mr. Straw: The data are held centrally only for the two years since the establishment of the Ministry of Justice. To obtain the data now for previous years would incur disproportionate costs.
The following tables show the position at the end of each of the last two financial years in respect of the number of claims issued at the Employment Tribunal against the Ministry of Justice, and their outcomes. All of the claims shown in the tables were defended by the Ministry at the initial stage in the process.
The total number of people employed by the Ministry of Justice varies from day-to-day. The claims made are from an employment population of circ. 79,840 in 2007-08 and 80,750 in 2008-09. The staff numbers used are published headcount figures on 31 March 2009 held on the Office for National Statistics website at:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk
| Claims heard by employment tribunals | In favour of employee | In favour of MOJ | Outstanding | |
| (1) 19 of these cases showing as outstanding have actually been finalised, but the outcomes had not been updated. | ||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 110W—continued
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent steps his Department has taken to increase equality in his Department. [287973]
Mr. Wills: The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) has taken a number of steps to increase equality in the department to support the efficient delivery of our policies and services including ensuring that our staff have the opportunity to develop their full potential and are representative of the communities the Department serves.
During the past year we have launched MOJ's Equality Action Plan and Equality Audit Tool; developed our e-learning equality compliance training for staff; streamlined our equality impact assessment procedure, published our Equal Pay Audit, and launched our Equality and Diversity portal. We have also recently published our Equality Schemes Annual Review setting out our progress during 2008-09.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people from ethnic minority backgrounds are employed by his Department. [287972]
Mr. Wills: On 31 July 2009 (the latest date for which figures are available) 6,388 of the 69,677 Ministry of Justice employees who voluntarily declared their ethnicity, were recorded as Black or Minority Ethnic (BME). This represents 9.1 per cent. of all employees with known ethnicity. There are 10,544 members of staff who have not declared their ethnic origin and so we are unable to provide figures for them.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the (a) lowest, (b) average and (c) highest fine given to a person convicted of possession of (i) cannabis, (ii) ecstasy, (iii) cocaine, (iv) crack cocaine and (v) heroin has been in each year since 1997. [291253]
Claire Ward: The requested information is shown in the following table:
| Average, maximum and minimum fine amounts imposed at all cou rts by drug type and year, 1997 to 2007 , England and Wales | ||||
| Fine | ||||
| Drug type and year | Minimum (£) | Maximum (£) | Average (£) | |
| Source: OMS Analytical Services, Ministry of Justice. | ||||
These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 111W—continued
When a case is referred to Court, the amount of the fine is based not only on the nature of the offence and
mitigation presented, but also on the Defendant’s ability to pay. The Court will establish the latter by way of the Statement of Means which is a questionnaire designed to clarify the Defendant’s income and outgoings.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prosecutions there have been for offences under the Forced Marriage Act 2008 since its introduction. [291550]
Claire Ward: The Forced Marriage (Civil Protection) Act 2007 was implemented in November 2008 providing greater protection for those at risk, preventing forced marriage and enabling courts to make forced marriage protection orders (FMPOs). These are civil provisions. There is not a separate Forced Marriage Act 2008.
I am told that since implementation of the Act on 25 November 2008, up to 31 August 2009, a total of 64 FMPOs have been made.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) with reference to the Land Registry Annual Report 2007-08, what criteria the Land Registry applies in respect of the level of fees it charges for adjudication hearings; and if he will make a statement; [290076]
(2) how much the Land Registry received in fees for adjudication hearings in each of the last four years; and if he will make a statement. [290078]
Mr. Wills: The Adjudicator to HM Land Registry is a judicial office within the Tribunal Service and is independent of Land Registry, with specific powers to determine disputes referred under section 73(7) of the Land Registration Act 2002. Land Registry must refer cases to the Adjudicator when there is a disputed application which cannot be resolved by agreement between the parties concerned. Applications may also be made directly to the Adjudicator for correcting or setting aside a document relating to registered land, and he hears appeals in relation to network access agreements.
Land Registry does not charge a fee when a matter is referred to the Adjudicator and has not received any fees for adjudication hearings. The Land Registration Act 2002 gives the Lord Chancellor power to prescribe fees for proceedings before the Adjudicator; that power has not been exercised and the services are currently free of charge. The Adjudicator is able to make orders for costs in relation to proceedings before him, unless the parties concerned have agreed who should pay.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many adjudication hearings the Land Registry has held in each of the last four years; and if he will make a statement. [290077]
Mr. Wills: All adjudication hearings are held by the Adjudicator to HM Land Registry, which is an independent office created by the Land Registration Act 2002. Land Registry has therefore made reference to the Adjudicator to provide the data requested. The number of hearings in each of the last four financial years was as follows:
| Number of adjudication hearings | |
Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what progress his Department has made in its review of the effects of the internet on the operation of libel laws. [292091]
Bridget Prentice: We published a consultation paper “Defamation and the Internet: the multiple publication rule” on 16 September 2009. This consultation seeks views on the effect of the multiple publication rule (which provides that each publication of defamatory material can form the basis of a new cause of action) in relation to online archives and will close on 16 December 2009.
The Government will consider other issues in relation to the law of libel in the light of any recommendations that the Department for Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee may wish to make in its forthcoming report on its inquiry into Press Standards, Privacy and Libel.
Mr. Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether the Government (1) received representations from the US administration at the time of his decision to alter the terms of the proposed UK-Libya Prisoner Transfer Agreement so that it did not exclude the case of Mr al-Megrahi; and if he will make a statement; [291165]
(2) informed the US administration at the time of its decision to alter the terms of the proposed UK-Libya Prisoner Transfer Agreement so that it did not exclude the case of Mr al-Megrahi; and if he will make a statement. [291166]
Mr. Straw: Throughout the negotiations on the prisoner transfer agreement (PTA) between the United Kingdom and Libya the US Government were kept informed of developments. The United States Government maintained their view that Mr. Al-Megrahi should serve out his sentence in Scotland.
It was always the position of the UK Government that excluding Mr. Megrahi from the terms of the treaty was not necessary. The PTA did not confer a right to transfer on prisoners. Transfer could only take place if both Governments concerned agreed. In the event that Mr. Megrahi’s application under the PTA was refused by the Scottish Executive.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many contracts let by his Department were awarded to businesses with fewer than 50 employees in each of the last five years; and what the monetary value of such contracts was in each such year. [287804]
Mr. Wills: At present information relating to the size (number of people) and status of businesses is not captured as standard practice when contracts are awarded to suppliers. Therefore, the requested information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he plans to reply to the letter of 4 June 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on Mrs A Barry. [290239]
Mr. Straw: I replied to my right hon. Friend on 25 July and I apologise for the delay.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the budget of each major area of expenditure of the National Offender Management Service is for 2009-10. [290320]
Mr. Straw: The budget of the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) for 2009-10 by major area of expenditure as published in the 2009 Main Estimates, is shown in the following table:
| 2009-10 Departmental expenditure limits | |
| (£ million) | |
|
National Probation Boards Grant in aid (includes £3 million capital) | |
Since the creation of the new NOMS agency in 2008, there is no longer a natural separation of budgets and expenditure between HQ and other services and the methodology used for the above classification has proved difficult to maintain. It is intended to propose an amendment to this classification in a Supplementary Estimate to make “HQ” synonymous with the “Administration” classification also used in the Estimates. Taking into account this proposed amendment, the NOMS resource budget can be broken down over the following more detailed headings:
| (£ million) | |
|
Capacity Directorate (Major maintenance, property costs and increasing prison capacity) | |
There is no current breakdown of the NOMS budget for 2010-11 as decisions have not been made on allocation of 2010-11 budgets.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the budget for the National Offender Management Service headquarters is for 2010-11. [290324]
Maria Eagle: The allocation of the 2010-11 resource budget for the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) is not yet finalised. The Main Estimates which will provide the funding for the three funding streams of NOMS HQ, Operations and Probation boards, are expected to be laid before Parliament in the spring of 2010.
Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he plans to introduce spending limits on parliamentary candidates. [289630]
Mr. Wills: Section 21 of the Political Parties and Elections Act 2009 will introduce pre-candidacy spending limits on the election expenses of individuals at certain general elections. These spending limits will apply if and when a Parliament runs for over 55 months. In the case of the current Parliament, the spending limit would apply to all election expenses used after 1 January 2010, should Parliament not be dissolved before that date.
As I made clear at Commons Report stage of the Political Parties and Elections Bill on 9 February, these provisions will not be commenced until restrictions on the use of the Communications Expenditure have been agreed by the House. As my hon. Friend, the Deputy Leader of the House (Barbara Keeley) made clear in a written answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham (Mr. Maude) on 20 July 2009, Official Report, column 800W, the Leader of the House hopes to bring forward the necessary amendments shortly after the summer adjournment.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many press releases his Department has issued in the last 12 months; [287967]
(2) how many press officers his Department employs. [288036]
Mr. Wills: Between 1 September 2008 and 31 August 2009 the Ministry of Justice press office issued 183 press notices. These were sent to national, regional and international media and highlighted the work and policies of the Department. Writing and issuing press notices is a small part of a press officer's job which also includes elements such as providing a round the clock service to global media outlets, arranging and attending media facilities with Ministers, arranging media interviews and media monitoring.
As at 31 August 2009, the Ministry of Justice employed 40 press officers. This includes a press officer on maternity leave. Staffing levels in the Ministry's Communications Directorate now more adequately reflect the high level of media interest in the work of the Department, and the need to meet the high demands of a 24/7 media. It is right that the public know and understand the work of the MOJ and its agencies and how taxpayers' money is being spent. Communications, including the work of the press office, is an important element of this.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent steps his Department has taken to improve prison conditions. [287963]
Mr. Straw: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 7 July 2009, Official Report, columns 668-69W.
The National Offender Management Service has a statutory duty to hold all prisoners in decent conditions.
As part of our commitment to increase the capacity of the prison estate to 96,000 places, we are building new prisons and expanding existing prisons. The new buildings produced by this capacity programme are providing modern accommodation that is fully compliant with relevant standards such as the new safer cell specification.
In addition, on 27 April I announced that, instead of building three 2,500 place “Titan” prisons, we plan to build five 1,500 place prisons. Our model will draw on best practice in the existing estate to provide first class regimes that will help offenders address their offending behaviour. The 7,500 places provided by these new prisons will allow for the closure of some of the most worn out places.
These measures support our aim, not only to provide additional capacity, but to modernise the estate and improve the quality of accommodation.
For existing accommodation, we have a rolling programme of refurbishment that allows the critical maintenance of the estate to be undertaken.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of steps taken to reduce overcrowding in prisons in England and Wales. [291392]
Mr. Straw: The Government have been pursuing a clear strategy to increase capacity in the prison estate and to ensure that custody is properly targeted at those serious, dangerous and persistent offenders for whom imprisonment is necessary.
Since April 2007, over 5,200 places have been provided by the Capacity Programme and in 2009 alone, nearly 1,000 places have been delivered to date.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average (a) tariff and (b) time served by offenders sentenced to (i) a mandatory life sentence and (ii) a discretionary life sentence was in each of the last 10 years. [287898]
Mr. Straw: Details of prisoners' releases are published in the 'Offender Management Caseload Statistics' (OMCS) produced by Offender Management and Sentence Analytical Services in the Ministry of Justice. This is available in the Library of the House and is available at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/pulicatons/statistics
OMCS provides details of the time served by offenders sentenced to a mandatory life sentence, and by all other life sentenced offenders, not including offenders serving an indeterminate sentence of imprisonment for public protection (IPP).
Disaggregating the time served by those serving discretionary from the “other life sentenced offenders” in OMCS would incur disproportionate costs.
The following table sets out the average time, by number of years, served by mandatory and other lifers, by year of release:
| Mandatory Lifers | Other Lifers | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 117W—continued
The following table sets out the average tariff length for sentences received in the same time period, for mandatory lifers and other lifers (not including indeterminate sentences for public protection), rounded to the nearest year, by year and sentence. As with any large scale recording system, they are subject to possible errors arising from either data entry or processing.
| Mandatory Lifers | Other Lifers | |
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what proportion of prisoners who completed their sentence during (a) 2007 and (b) 2008 served their entire sentence in prison. [291835]
Maria Eagle: In accordance with the legislation which governs the release of prisoners, no prisoner serving a determinate sentence is required to serve the entire sentence in prison. Successive legislation on this, since 1967, has maintained the approach that prisoners should serve a proportion of their sentence in custody and the rest in the community, often subject to licence conditions on release. This approach is vital for the purposes of safely reintegrating prisoners back into the community and to reduce the risk of further offending. If prisoners were to serve their whole sentence in prison they would have to be released without any supervision or restrictions, which would put the public at risk.
Only those prisoners serving a life sentence with a whole life tariff will spend their entire sentence in prison.
The following table shows the average percentage of sentence served (including time on remand) for prisoners discharged from determinate sentences in 2007 and 2008 from prison establishments in England and Wales.
| Percentage of time served including remand | ||
| 2007 | 2008 | |
This table is an extract from tables 9.1 and 9.2 in the recently published Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2008, a copy of which has been placed in the House of Commons Library and which can also be found at the following website:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/prisonand probation.htm
These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
Mr. Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the difference was between the budget and the expenditure outturn for the Prison Service in the financial years (a) 2005-06, (b) 2006-07 and (c) 2007-08. [288804]
Maria Eagle: The budget and expenditure outturn figures for HM Prison Service (HMPS) are as follows:
| (£) | |||
| Resource b udget | Outturn e xpenditure | Underspend/(Overspend) | |
Mr. Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many staff of his Department have been seconded to work on the Prison Service's in-house bid for the next round of market testing. [288823]
Maria Eagle: 29 staff have now been redeployed within the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) in response to the announcement made by the Lord Chancellor on 27 April 2009.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners escaped from each open prison in England and Wales in each of the last (a) 12 months and (b) 12 years for which figures are available; for which offence each prisoner was originally convicted; and which prisoners are still unlawfully at large. [288435]
Maria Eagle: Escapes involve a prisoner absenting himself from prison custody without lawful authority by overcoming a physical security restraint such as that provided by fences, locks, bolts and bars, a secure vehicle or handcuffs. Absconds occur where a prisoner absents himself or herself from prison custody without lawful authority and without overcoming physical security barriers or restraints, conditions typically found in open prisons. Absconds have been falling and last year recorded the lowest number of absconds on record.
The data in table 1 show the number of prisoners who have absconded from each open prison in England and Wales for the last 12 months and numbers of prisoners who remain unlawfully at large.
Table 2 shows the number of prisoners who have absconded from each open prison in England and Wales for the last 12 years and numbers of prisoners who remain unlawfully at large. Figures for prisoners unlawfully at large prior to April 2004,are not available centrally and could be produced only at disproportionate cost.
Table 3 shows the index offences of prisoners who have absconded from each open prison since April
2004. Data are not available centrally prior to this period and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
All those located in open conditions have been risk assessed and categorised as being of low risk to the public. Time spent in open prisons affords prisoners the opportunity to find work, re-establish family ties, reintegrate into the community and ensure housing needs are met. For long-term prisoners these are essential components for successful resettlement and an important factor in protecting the public.
Prisons can and do take a variety of actions to try and reduce absconds. Open prisons operate intelligence systems to try and spot those who might be planning to abscond; prisoners are screened and those who are at significant risk of absconding are sent back to closed conditions; in many areas the prison, police and CPS are working together to maximise the prosecution of absconders to provide a deterrent to others who may be thinking of doing the same.
| Table 1: Numbers of prisoners who have absconded from open prisons in England and Wales for the last 12 months (first row for each prison) and those who remain unlawfully at large (second row for each prison) | ||||||||||||
| 2008 | 2009 | |||||||||||
| Establishments | Jul | Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov | Dec | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
| Note: The second row of each establishment shows the number of prisoners still unlawfully at large. | ||||||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 122W—continued
| Table 2: Numbers of prisoners who have absconded from open prisons in England and Wales for the last 12 years (first row for each prison) and those who remain unlawfully at large (second row for each prison) | ||||||||||||
| Establishments | 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
| (1) Drake Hall changed role to Semi Open in 2001-02 from Open (2) Hatfield merged with Moorland in 2003-04 (3) Hewell - changed of name from Hewell Grange June 2008 (4) Kirklevington changed role to Semi Open in 2001-02 from Category C (5) Latchmere House changed role to Semi Open in 2001-02 from Open (6) Morton Hall changed role to Semi Open in 2001-02 from Open (7) Norwich - Open Resettlement Unit Notes: 1. Figures for prisoners unlawfully at large are unavailable centrally prior to April 2004. 2. The second row of each establishment shows the number of prisoners still unlawfully at large | ||||||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 124W—continued
| Table 3: Breakdown of prisoners absconding from prisons in England and Wales between April 2004 to March 2009 showing main index offence | |||||||||
| Main Index Offence | Askham Grange | Blantyre House | East Sutton Park | Ford | Grendon/Springhill | Hewell | Hollesley Bay | Kirkham | Kirklevington |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 128W—continued
| Main Index Offence | Leyhill | Moorland | North Sea Camp | Norwich | Standford Hill | Sudbury | Thorn Cross | Usk/ Prescoed | Wealstun |
| Note: These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system. | |||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 132W—continued
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many of the 954 offenders who had their licence recalled in 2008-09 and were not returned to custody are foreign nationals. [291425]
Mr. Straw: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 14 September 2009, Official Report, columns 2152-153W.
In my written ministerial statement of 6 July 2009, Audit of Licence Revocation, Official Report, columns 34-38WS, I announced that, as at 26 June 2009, 954 offenders
who had their licences revoked between 1984 and 31 March 2009 were not recorded as having been returned to custody. Of the 954, there were 192 foreign nationals. Of the 192, 64 were assessed as meeting the criteria for deportation.
Over the last 10 years, more than 99 per cent. of offenders who have been recalled to prison have been successfully apprehended. We are determined to build on this creditable performance.
All agencies are working together to review and revise the end-to-end recall process, to ensure that we have the strongest grip on these individuals and can return them to custody as quickly as possible. The police have an action plan in place to deal with outstanding cases.
The Probation Service has significantly improved its enforcement of breaches. In 1997 only a third of breaches were being appropriately enforced, compared to over 95 per cent. by 2008. Before 1999 recall was rarely used because such cases had to go through the courts.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many early release prisoners have been re-arrested following release (a) since 1997 and (b) in the last 12 months; [290106]
(2) how many prisoners released under early release schemes in each year since 1997 were since convicted of offences of (a) murder and (b) rape. [290107]
Mr. Straw: Determinate sentenced prisoners may be released into the community earlier than the halfway point of their sentence only under either the End of Custody Licence (ECL) scheme or the Home Detention Curfew (HDC) scheme. Indeterminate sentenced prisoners are not eligible for early release.
The Ministry of Justice does not hold centrally details of all offenders released on ECL or HDC who have been re-arrested. The Department does hold data on the number of offenders released on HDC or ECL who were recalled to custody following release. An arrest in itself may not result in a recall—for example, where the police investigation does not result in any charges, the decision may be taken not to recall the offender.
Data on ECL releases, recalls and alleged re-offending is published every month on the following website:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/endofcustodylicence.htm
The numbers recalled from ECL since the scheme's inception for all reasons are shown in Table 1.
| Table 1 | |
| Number | |
The numbers of HDC recalls since its inception in January 1999 are published in the annual Offender Management Caseload Statistics and are shown in Table 2.
| Table 2: HDC recalls since 1999 | |
| Year of recall | Numbers recalled |
As regards those prisoners who were released early and were subsequently convicted of murder or rape, the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) holds information on the number of offenders, whose cases were notified in line with Serious Further Offence (SFO) procedures, who had been released on licence and subsequently convicted of (a) murder and (b) rape, for the years 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09. To provide the full set of information from 1997 would require manual checking of files, which could be undertaken only at disproportionate cost.
Of those released on HDC or ECL from 2006-07 onwards, NOMS has been notified that there have been four convictions for murder and two convictions for rape, as shown in Table 3.
| Table 3 | ||||
| HDC | Year of conviction | ECL | Year of conviction | |
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners granted early release have been convicted of (1) dangerous offences in the last 12 months; [290108]
(2) violent offences in the last 12 months. [290109]
Mr. Straw: The Ministry of Justice records the number of alleged offences while on early custody licence (ECL) and has recently released figures of offenders who reoffended while on home detention custody (HDC).
Data on ECL releases, recalls and alleged re-offending is published every month on the following website.
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/endofcustodylicence.htm
During the period 29 June 2007 (the start of the scheme) to 31 August 2009 (the latest data available), 67,380 prisoners were released on ECL of which 1,026 offenders have been notified to the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) as alleged to have committed a further offence while on the scheme. The total number of alleged further offences committed by these prisoners during their period of ECL is 1,363. Within this, 284 were alleged violent offences, seven alleged sexual offences and 36 were alleged to have committed robbery.
The latest figures on reoffending while on home detention curfew were released by this Department in my written ministerial statement on 14 September 2009, Official Report, columns 142-44WS. This shows that 11,316 offenders were released on HDC during 2007-08. Of these PNC data identified that 60 offences of violence against the person, one sexual offence and seven robberies were committed while on HDC.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many people convicted of terrorist offences and sentenced to more than 12 months’ imprisonment have been released early from prison since 2001; [290110]
(2) how many people convicted of terrorism offences in the UK since 2001 have been released early from prison; [290111]
(3) how many members of the prison population have been convicted of terrorism offences in each year since 2001; [290112]
(4) how many people convicted of terrorism offences in the UK have been released to bail hostels accommodation since 2001. [290113]
Mr. Straw: Eligible prisoners may be released earlier than the halfway point of their sentence under the Home Detention Curfew (HDC) or End of Custody Licence (ECL) schemes. Foreign national prisoners who are to be deported may also be liable for early removal under the Early Removal Scheme (ERS).
Prisoners serving sentences for any offence under terrorism legislation have been presumed unsuitable for release on HDC since 4 April 2008 and excluded from release on ECL since 28 March 2008. It has also been decided that, with effect from 16 October 2008, early removal under ERS should not be granted to prisoners convicted under terrorism legislation offences.
Prior to those decisions being taken, three prisoners convicted of terrorism offences were released on the HDC scheme: two in 2003 and one in 2007. All were serving sentences of 12 months or more.
Two prisoners were released on ECL during 2008 whilst serving sentences for terrorism offences: one in January 2008 and one in February 2008. One of those prisoners was serving a sentence of 12 months or more.
No prisoners serving sentences for terrorism offences have been removed early under the ERS scheme.
Information regarding the number of individuals convicted of terrorism or terrorism related offences can be found in the Home Office Statistical Bulletin on Terrorism Arrests and Outcomes which was published for the first time on 13 May 2009 and is available on the Home Office website. This bulletin is intended to be the first in a regular series of publications which will help improve the quality of data publicly available on terrorism arrests and their outcomes.
Data about offenders released into approved premises (formerly known as bail/probation hostels) has been collected centrally only since April 2004, from information supplied by individual approved premises. The data collected does not include offence details and no other centrally held information includes details of the numbers of terrorist offenders released to approved premises dating back to 2001. Tracking this information down would have to be done on a case by case basis and as such would prove disproportionately expensive. However, since September 2008 information on the release details of individuals convicted of terrorism or terrorism related offences has been held centrally and 11 terrorist offenders have been released to approved premises since then.
These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many offenders convicted of terrorism offences are housed in approved premises in England and Wales. [290334]
Mr. Straw: The National Offender Management Service does not hold centrally details on offenders by offence type currently being housed in approved premises.
Where merited by the circumstances of the case, offenders can be required upon release to reside in approved premises, to allow for a period of enhanced supervision, contributing to protecting the public and assisting in their managed reintegration into society. As of 31 July 2009, 14 offenders convicted of terrorism or terrorist-related offences have been released initially to approved premises, although of these, some will subsequently have been moved on to other risk-assessed accommodation.
Mr. Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much compensation was paid to prisoners at each prison in each of the last five years; and what the reason was in each case. [288630]
Claire Ward: The information requested for the last available four financial years is detailed in several spreadsheets which will be placed in the Library of the House. The figures relate to compensation paid in respect of civil litigation claims only.
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what information is given to people with epilepsy on the care they will receive on their entry to (a) a prison and (b) a young offender institution; [289951]
(2) how many people diagnosed with epilepsy died in (a) prisons and (b) young offender institutions in each of the last five years; [289990]
(3) on how many occasions emergency medical care has been requested to treat people with epilepsy suffering a seizure in (a) prisons and (b) young offender institutions in each of the last five years; [289991]
(4) how many people diagnosed with epilepsy were allocated to a single cell in (a) prisons and (b) young offender institutions in each of the last five years; [289992]
(5) how many people diagnosed with epilepsy entered status epilepticus while held in (a) prisons and (b) young offender institutions in each of the last five years. [289993]
Maria Eagle: Offenders are now all screened on arrival in prison by a trained nurse or trained officer to find out what their health needs are and get them the right treatment.
The Department of Health and the Prison Reform Trust have recently published two new information books for prisoners with a disability. The first book is a short, easy-read version for prisoners with learning disabilities, the second book contains more in depth detail for prisoners on their health, daily life, and how to get help in prison and on release this includes information on epilepsy.
Epilepsy action has produced information giving clear, straightforward information about epilepsy, relevant for staff supervising prisoners with epilepsy and for prisoners. This is available online at:
www.epilepsy.org.uk
Epilepsy facts and important things to know about anti-epileptic drugs
Cell and bunk allocation
Safety
Risk of dying from epilepsy and sudden unexpected death in epilepsy
Employment and safety at work
Types of seizures (fits) and non-epileptic attack disorder
Myths and misunderstandings—information for prison staff
The Department of Health will shortly be writing to all prison and young offender institution heads of health care about the NICE guidelines on epilepsy and the Epilepsy Action information booklets.
There is no information held centrally on the number of offenders diagnosed with epilepsy who died in prisons and young offender institutions, on how many occasions emergency medical care has been requested to treat people with epilepsy having a seizure in prisons and young offender institutions, how many people diagnosed with epilepsy were allocated to a single cell in prisons and young offender institutions and how many people diagnosed with epilepsy entered status epilepticus while held in prisons and young offender institutions in each of the last five years.
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what guidance his Department provides to staff in (a) prisons and (b) young offender institutions on the effect of restraint techniques on people affected by seizures. [289952]
Maria Eagle: Control and restraint (C&R) is a system of techniques used within both prisons and young offender institutions in order to bring a violent or non-compliant prisoner under control. C&R is only applied in circumstances where it is necessary to do so and any force used is applied for as short a time as possible and only in proportion to the violence shown by the prisoner. Staff are instructed to avoid use of force wherever possible and instead to use persuasion or negotiation to end such incidents, however, this is not always possible.
All staff in prisons and young offender institutions who employ C&R techniques are trained in their use and undergo annual refresher training. This training includes recognition of the signs and symptoms that may indicate that a prisoner is in medical distress. Guidance on medical warning signs is also included in prison service order (PSO) 1600—Use of Force(1).
A member of health care must, wherever reasonably practicable, attend every incident where staff are deployed to restrain violent or disturbed prisoners. Health care staff are authorised to terminate any use of force in the event of a medical emergency.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 138W—continued
(1) Available at:
http://pso.hmprisonservice.gov.uk/pso1600/default.htm
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many women in each age group were received into prison under sentence in each of the last 10 years. [291726]
Claire Ward: The table shows the numbers of female prisoners that were received under sentence in all prison establishments in England and Wales in each year since 1998, by age band.
| Number of persons | |||||||||||
| 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | |
| Note: Excludes police cells | |||||||||||
This information is taken from table 6.6 in the recently published Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2008, a copy of which has been placed in the House of Commons Library, and which can also be found at the following website:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/prisonandprobation.htm
These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) Romanian and (b) Bulgarian nationals are serving sentences in UK prisons. [291831]
Claire Ward: At the end of June 2009, the latest date for which figures are available, there were 180 Romanian and 36 Bulgarian nationals serving sentences in all prison establishments in England and Wales. Statistics relating to the numbers held in Scottish and Northern Irish prisons are the responsibility of the Scottish Government and the Northern Irish Prison Service respectively.
These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners diagnosed with a learning disability have been transferred from prison to secure units in each strategic health authority region in each of the last five years. [290242]
Claire Ward: Information is not available in the form requested. However, information is available on the number of prisoners with a diagnosis of ‘mental impairment’ or ‘severe mental impairment’ within the terms of the Mental Health Act 1983 who have been transferred from prison to a secure hospital unit in England and Wales in the last five years. Individuals in these categories will almost invariably have a learning disability. The figures are shown in the following table. A breakdown by strategic health authority is not available.
| Number transferred | |
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners with mental illnesses have been transferred from prison to hospital (a) six months, (b) one month and (c) a week before their release date in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [290013]
Claire Ward: The information requested is shown in the table. The number of transferred prisoners includes both restricted and unrestricted patients, and includes prisoners suffering from all the categories of mental disorder defined in the Mental Health Act 1983 before its amendment with effect from 3 November 2008.
| (a) Six months | (b) One month | (c) One week | Period unknown | ||||||
| Total number of transfers to hospital involving sentenced prisoners | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | |
Many of the prisoners who were transferred within one month or one week of their release date were serving short sentences of less than six months. The Secretary of State will only authorise a transfer very close to the end of sentence where he is satisfied on the basis of medical advice that it is justified by the prisoner’s medical condition.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many mobile telephones were found in the possession of prisoners in (a) top security and (b) all other prisons in the last 12 months for which figures are available. [287998]
Maria Eagle: Prisons in England and Wales are asked to send mobile phones and SIM cards they find to a central unit for analysis. In the last 12 months (from July 2008-June 2009), 8,648 mobile phones and SIM cards were analysed. 255 were from the high security estate and 8,393 were from the non-high security estate. These figures include items discovered within prison perimeters and on entry to establishments. We do not keep central records of mobile phones found in the possession of prisoners.
We believe that these figures may understate the actual number of finds, because they do not include items retained by the police for evidential purposes, and because in some instances prisons have not sent items for analysis. NOMS is putting in place new procedures to ensure that we have a more comprehensive picture in future. While the numbers of phones found indicates the scale of the challenge in tackling illicit mobile phones, it is also a reflection of prisons’ increasing success in finding them and better reporting.
NOMS is implementing a strategy to minimise the number of phones entering prisons, and to find or disrupt those that do enter. As part of the strategy, prisons have been provided with technologies to strengthen local security and searching strategies, in line with the recommendations in the Blakey report, “Disrupting the Supply of Illicit Drugs into Prisons”, published in July 2008. This includes the roll out of “BOSS” chairs to all prisons, and the deployment of other detection and disruption technologies, including mobile phone signal blockers.
We have also strengthened the law, through the Offender Management Act 2007 (implemented in April 2008), which makes it a criminal offence with a punishment of up to two years’ imprisonment to bring an unauthorised mobile phone or component part into a prison.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 140W—continued
Mr. Garnier:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what the estimated (a) total capital construction cost excluding operation and maintenance and (b) capital construction cost per prison place per year of lifespan excluding operation and maintenance is of each of the
two planned 1,500 place prisons announced by his Department on 27 April 2009, should the prisons be delivered under similar contractual arrangements to current PFI prisons; [292392]
(2) how many new prison places have been brought on stream in each of the last 24 months for which figures are available; and what the estimated capital construction cost was per prison place per year of lifespan, excluding operation, maintenance and other costs. [292395]
Mr. Straw: The framework approach used by the Prison Service for the new 1,500 place prisons is designed to introduce real competition into the procurement process for each prison, and the construction and operating costs are a key part of our commercial strategy to ensure value for money. It is therefore not possible to reveal the estimated costs at this stage of the procurement.
The Core Capacity Programme aims to deliver approximately 12,500 places by 2012. The following table shows the number of places delivered in each month since October 2007 as part of this programme:
| Number of places( 1) | |
| (1) Includes places delivered through new build accommodation, conversion of existing buildings and more effective use of the estate. | |
The average construction cost for the Core Capacity Programme (not all new build), including costs of providing ancillary facilities, and excluding running costs, is approximately £170,000 per place across the lifetime of the accommodation.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost to his Department was of (a) all mandatory drug testing in prisons in England and Wales in 2008-09 and (b) one mandatory drug test of an individual prisoner on the latest date for which figures are available. [290290]
Maria Eagle: Many staff responsible for the mandatory drug testing (MDT) process do not work exclusively on the testing of prisoners. The cost of MDT staff resources cannot be disaggregated from the overall prison running costs.
The cost to the National Offender Management Service of MDT analytical services is classified as commercial in confidence.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the street value of all drugs used illegally in each (a) adult prison and (b) young offender institution in England and Wales in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available. [292394]
Maria Eagle: Information on the street value of drugs used illegally in prisons is not routinely available. Covert activity such as drug taking, by its nature, is very difficult to quantify. A report published in 2001 by the Home Office titled ‘Sizing the UK market for illicit drugs’ focused on a few specific drugs and estimated the value of the drugs trade in prisons as worth up to £24 million. Since that report, the level of drug misuse evidenced by the random drug testing positive rate has fallen by 36 per cent.
Mr. David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what energy efficiency standards his Department has stipulated for circulator pumps installed in (a) existing and (b) new prisons. [291790]
Maria Eagle: The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) does not stipulate energy efficiency standards for circulator pumps. However, in existing Prison Service buildings, it is recommended that variable speed pump motors are fitted where it is practical to do so and where savings can be made within a suitable payback period.
NOMS standard for new build and refurbishment projects is that;
Accommodation will deliver optimum energy efficient solutions to achieve a low energy building that is significantly lower than typical development.
New builds must meet current Buildings Regulations Part L (2000) which include energy conservation requirements.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) directors, (b) senior managers and (c) executive support and administration staff there were in each prison in each of the last five years. [287871]
Maria Eagle: Information on the number of (a) directors, (b) senior managers and (c) executive support and administration staff in each prison over the last five years is shown in the following tables. The data provided covers the public sector and the contracted estate. Grading systems vary between the public and private sectors, and between individual contractors. Self reporting has been used in this response.
| Staff in post for selected grades by establishment 2004-05 to 2008-09 | |||||||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | |||||||
| Name | Admin and Executive Support | Senior Managers | Director/ Senior Civil Servant | Admin and Executive Support | Senior Managers | Director/ Senior Civil Servant | Admin and Executive Support | Senior Managers | Director/ Senior Civil Servant |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 148W—continued
| 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |||||
| Name | Admin and Executive Support | Senior Managers | Director/Senior Civil Servant | Admin and Executive Support | Senior Managers | Director/Senior Civil Servant |
| (1) Figures prior to 2009 not available. Notes: 1. Headcount (part-timers count as one). 2. There are typically no senior civil servants based within public sector establishments. Governing governors, who have the chief responsibility for the establishment, are allocated in senior management grades (A-D). However, for some private prisons there is a specific director role and therefore the figures reflect this job title. PQ Grade NOMS Grade Directors Senior Civil Servants Senior Managers Senior Managers (A-D) Executive Support and Administration Staff AA, AO, EO, Typists and Personal Secretaries Source: Oracle HRMS and Personnel Management System | ||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 152W—continued
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prison officers have been charged with aiding and abetting, counselling or procuring misconduct in a public office in each of the last 24 months for which figures are available. [290774]
Maria Eagle: The requested information is not collated and held centrally in any format that would enable the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) to answer the specific questions that have been asked.
Staff in NOMS are expected to meet high standards of professional and personal conduct. They have, therefore, a responsibility to notify their Governor or Head of Group if they are charged with any criminal offence. Information on the numbers of prison officers charged with offences covered by misconduct in public office could only be obtained by contacting all NOMS establishments and asking them to provide any information they hold locally in this respect. This would incur disproportionate cost. We are, however, taking steps to record more detailed information in this area.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people were detected attempting to break into a prison in 2008-09. [291254]
Maria Eagle: The following table shows the number of incidents recorded on the Prison Service Incident Reporting System where people attempted to gain access to a prison without authority during that period. The majority of these incidents involved members of the public trespassing on the grounds of open prisons where, by the very nature of the establishments, access is more difficult to control. There have been no recorded incidents of people gaining access to the interior of a closed prison within this period.
| Breakdown of incidents involving people attempting to gain access to a prison without authority | ||
| Prison type | Individuals involved | Total incidents |
| Notes: 1. Three individuals were found leaving a prison staff locker room area located outside the main prison. Police were called but the three individuals had left the area. 2. Individual discovered on camera trying to climb the fence. Police were called but the individual had left the area. 3. Individual tried unsuccessfully to gain unauthorised entry into the main gate of an establishment. | ||
These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the proportion of probation officer time spent on front line work with offenders in each year since 1997. [290289]
Maria Eagle: This information is not held centrally by the National Offender Management Service, nor is it held at probation area or trust level.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many probation officers in each probation service area have been qualified for more than three years. [290288]
Maria Eagle: It is not possible to say how long each probation officer has been qualified as this information is not collected centrally and to do so would incur disproportionate cost.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the average offender caseload a probation officer supervises; and what is the maximum number of offenders an officer may supervise. [290335]
Maria Eagle: Figures for 31 December 2008 show that the average caseload per Probation Officer across the 42 probation areas in England and Wales ranged from 18 to 54 cases. There is no specified maximum number of offenders that an officer may supervise.
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent estimate he has made of the number of probation officers there are per head of population in each probation service area. [291653]
Maria Eagle: The information requested is not collated centrally and could be provided only by contacting each probation area at a disproportionate cost.
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the ratio of probation officers to offenders was in each probation service area on the latest date for which figures are available. [291654]
Maria Eagle: The following table shows the ratio of offenders to probation officers(1) in each probation area on 30 September 2008; the last date for which corresponding staffing and offender information is currently available.
(1 )Includes; Senior Probation Officers, Senior Practitioners, Probation Officers, Trainee Probation Officers, Practice Development Assessors, Probation Service Officers and Treatment Managers.
| Probation area/trust | Ratio |
The ratio nationally of offenders to probation officers is 17.5:1.
Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) trainee and (b) qualified probation officers have been employed by the Probation Service in each year since 1997. [290144]
Maria Eagle: The following table shows the numbers of trainee probation officers and qualified probation officers on 31 December in each year since 1997(1).
| Trainee probation officers | Qualified probation officers( 1) | |
| (1 )Figures include senior practitioners, senior probation officers, probation officers and practice development assessors. Note: Figures are shown as full time equivalents. | ||
Figures for the year 2008-09 are not yet available.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much was spent from the public purse on training probation officers in 2008-09. [290337]
Maria Eagle: In the financial year 2008-09, £41.772 million was allocated to trainee probation officer (TPO) training.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the ratio of (a) male to female offenders and (b) male to female probation staff in each age range in the Essex probation area was in the latest period for which figures are available. [287500]
Maria Eagle: The information in the following tables shows the ratio of male to female offenders in each age range and the total male to female staff in each age range in the Essex probation area. There is a higher proportion of male to female offenders and a higher proportion of female to male staff. This has been fairly consistent in recent years.
| Table 1: Male to female ratio of offenders in the Essex probation area in each age range | |
| Ratio of offenders by gender, for each age range | Male : Female |
| Table 2: The total male to female staff in each age range in the Essex probation area | |
| Ratio of overall staff by gender, for age range | Male : Female |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 156W—continued
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many probation officers in each London borough have been qualified for more than three years. [290331]
Maria Eagle: Probation officers employed by London Probation in London boroughs with three years plus experience is shown in the following table.
| Borough | Total probation officers | Total three years plus experience | Percentage three years plus experience |
| Note. In some areas of London; London Probation manage the boroughs on a joint basis and staff are expected to see offenders from both boroughs. In these areas the data cannot be broken down further. | |||
Mr. Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent assessment he has made of the effect on national standards and service delivery of proposed reductions in the number of jobs in the Probation Service in Hertfordshire Probation Area. [289341]
Maria Eagle: Hertfordshire probation area has carried out a detailed assessment and analysis of its services for 2009-13 to determine how service delivery and compliance with national standards can be sustained in a scenario where the economic downturn resulted in a challenging financial settlement for Hertfordshire probation. The Four Year Strategic Business Plan 2009-13 addresses the potential impact on work force and service delivery demand and the six strategic priorities outline how the service intends to ensure that services continue to be delivered and developed. The Four Year Strategic Business Plan and supporting planning documents form the cornerstone of Hertfordshire probation board's trust application.
Both internal and external stakeholders have been consulted and contributed to the development of the Four Year Strategic Plan and Organisational Development Plan 2009-13, which has been made available on the area website.
Mr. Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) probation officers and (b) probation service officers were employed in Hertfordshire Probation Area on 31 March in each of the last five years. [289348]
Maria Eagle: The information requested is shown in the following table:
| Number | |||||
| 31 March | |||||
| Hertfordshire | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 |
| (1) Community Service Officers are included within the PSO figures, these roles were assimilated into the PSO role during 2006-07. | |||||
The data provided for probation officers do not include trainee probation officers.
Mr. Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the (a) community and (b) custody caseload of the Probation Service for Hertfordshire Probation Area was on 31 March in each of the last five years. [289349]
Maria Eagle: The total community and pre-release custodial offender caseload for Hertfordshire as at 31 March in each of the last five years was as follows:
| 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | |
| (1) Includes those supervised on court orders as well as post-release supervision. Note: These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing. | |||||
Mr. Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many offenders resident in Hertfordshire Probation Area were categorised as Tier 4 in each of the last five financial years. [289353]
Maria Eagle: The total number of offenders in Hertfordshire probation area who were categorised as Tier 4 (high risk) as at 31 March in each of the last three years are shown in the following table:
| Number | |
| Notes: 1. Information on tier prior to 1 April 2005 was not recorded. 2. These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing. | |
Mr. Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) probation staff and (b) trainee probation officers he anticipates will be made redundant in Hertfordshire Probation Area in (i) 2009-10 and (ii) the next two financial years. [289354]
Maria Eagle: Hertfordshire probation area currently has served no notices of redundancy on probation staff for 2009-10.
Five trainee probation officers are anticipated to qualify on 31 October 2009. Hertfordshire probation area is currently assessing potential probation officer vacancies and is conducting an internal recruitment process. Any existing probation officer vacancies will be
offered to the qualifying trainee probation officers in the first instance. Hertfordshire probation area is also anticipating an ability to offer some fixed term contracts, to enable the area to remain flexible to manage its resources. No notice of redundancy has been issued to the trainee probation officers due to qualify in 2009.
Four trainee probation officers are due to qualify on 31 October 2010. It is too early to provide an indication of potential redundancies in 2010-11 for trainee probation officers, the work force planning approach is to avoid redundancy and safeguard the skills the area has invested in wherever possible.
No budget decisions have been made for the 2010-11 financial year, or for subsequent years, and it is therefore not possible to produce accurate staffing projections for this period. In relation to their trust application Hertfordshire probation have consulted with stakeholders and a copy of their four year strategic/organisational development plan can be found on their website.
Mr. Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what targets his Department has set for the (a) probation and (b) e for 2009-10. [290877]
Maria Eagle: The national targets that have been set for the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) Agency for 2009-10 are shown in the following table. In addition, there are more detailed targets in the service level agreements and contracts of public and private prison and probation providers against which performance is assessed.
| Number | Combined NOMS Agency Measures | Target 2009-10 |
|
Reduce re-offending (PSA 23) - 10% reduction on 2005 levels by 2011 | ||
|
The rate of serious assaults is less than 1.9% of the prison population | ||
|
Staff sickness does not exceed an average of 10.5 days per annum in public sector | ||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 160W—continued
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many probation officers on average have been assigned to the cases of each person convicted of terrorism offences in the UK in each year since 2001. [290104]
Mr. Straw: The National Offender Management Service does not hold centrally the details on the number of staff allocated by each probation area to individual cases. However, for offenders convicted of terrorism or terrorist-related offences, the Chief Officer or Chief Executive of Probation must ensure that the Offender Manager is suitably experienced and equipped to manage the case.
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much has been paid in legal aid fees to (a) the solicitor Phil Shiner and (b) Public Interest Lawyers since 2001. [289810]
Mr. Wills: The Legal Services Commission’s records of legal aid fees paid to Public Interest Lawyers since 2001, for the financial years requested (running from 1 April to 31 March) rounded to the nearest pound, are shown in the table. It should be noted that the fees paid could be for work done in previous years or for work covering more than one year.
The figures relate to civil legal aid work (the firm does not hold a crime contract). They have been calculated on the basis of net payments authorised.(1) All the figures listed are inclusive of VAT.
| Financial year | Total payment (£) |
| (1) Net payments authorised is the value of main bills submitted during the year, less any previous payments on account, plus new payments on account made during the year on outstanding cases. | |
The LSC makes payments to firms rather than individuals so it is not possible to identify payments to Phil Shiner of Public Interest Lawyers separately.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the budget for each Director of Offender Management office in each English region and Wales is for (a) 2009, (b) 2010 and (c) 2011. [290323]
Maria Eagle: The office budget of each Director of Offender Management in England and Wales for 2009-10 is shown in the following table:
| (£) | |
The budgets for 2010-11 onwards have not yet been determined.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people were employed in each Director of Offender Management office on the latest date for which figures are available; and whether he plans to recruit further staff to each office. [290322]
Maria Eagle: The core regional structure has been developed to deliver offender management at regional level. The DOM structure has been designed to deliver the objectives of the organisation by placing resources at the frontline to best meet community needs while ensuring the delivery of national standards and specifications.
The template is scaleable to match the size of each of the regions but the main structure is identical across the nine regions and Wales. A number of other posts may work under the DOM but are not shown in the regional structure as these receive funding from elsewhere.
The new regional offices opened as part of an organisational restructure in April 2009. We have been recruiting existing staff into the new posts via a job matching process; ring-fenced competition; and internal competition. An external recruitment process has been undertaken for a small number of specialist posts where no suitable internal candidates were found. Surpluses arising from the exercise are being managed robustly via the redeployment strategy. The overall staffing figure in the pre-existing Area and ROM offices prior to restructure was 576. On completion of the restructure, staffing in regional offices will be reduced by a total of 180 at an eventual saving of approximately £10 million.
The current position is shown in the following table.
| Region | Core regional structure (current state) | Core regional structure (authorised establishment figure) |
There are no plans to recruit any further staff into each office once all the posts are filled.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the average salary to be paid to the directors of offender management in each English region and Wales in 2009. [290321]
Maria Eagle: Part of the restructuring of the National Offender Management Service is the appointment of 10 Directors of Offender Management, DOMs, one for each of the nine regions in England and one in Wales from April 1 2009.
The salary of the DOM is dependent on the size and complexities of the region. Seven on the DOMs are in the SCS pay band 1 which ranges from £78,585 to £102,388 and the remaining three are in SCS pay band 2 which has a salary range from £87,055 to £150,000.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the re-offending rate for offenders resident in each police force area was in each year since 1997. [289393]
Claire Ward: The most recent reoffending rates are shown in the table. This data can be found in “Local Adult Reoffending 1 January 2008-31 December 2008 England and Wales” which was published 14 May 2009. This is available online at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/docs/local-adult-reoffending-2008-ii.pdf
Further details on local adult reoffending are contained in this publication.
Local adult reoffending rates by probation area are not available for periods prior to 1 October 2007-30 September 2008.
The local reoffending figures are produced by aggregating the data of four snapshots of the probation case load at the end of each quarter. Therefore the number of offenders quoted in the table is approximately four times the number of offenders on the case load at any one time.
Probation areas are coterminous with police force areas except in the case of London probation, which covers both the Metropolitan and the City of London police forces.
| Local reoffending rates by probation area, 1 January-31 December 2008 | ||
| Probation area | Cohort size (combining four quarters of probation case load data) | Actual rate of reoffending (percentage) |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 164W—continued
Julie Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many times restraint has been used on a child in (a) secure children's homes, (b) secure training centres and (c) young offender institutions for the purposes of (i) preventing a criminal offence, (ii) preventing injury, (iii) preventing damage to property and (iv) maintaining good order and discipline in each month of the last three years. [287748]
Maria Eagle: Physical restraint is only ever to be used by staff in the under-18 secure estate as a last resort, when all other approaches have either not succeeded or would not be appropriate.
The data provided in the following table, for the period April 2008 to May 2009, have been supplied by the Youth Justice Board (YJB) and have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing and may be subject to change over time. They relate to use of restraint in secure training centres.
Central collection of information about the reasons for each restraint began in April 2008. The categories in the table relate to the purposes for which restraint was permitted under Rule 38(1) of the Secure Training Centre Rules 1998 during all or part of the period in question. Those purposes are: to prevent a trainee from escaping from custody; to prevent a trainee from injuring himself or others; to prevent damage to property; to prevent a trainee from inciting another trainee to cause injury or damage property; and to ensure good order and discipline. Prevention of a criminal offence is not, in itself, a purpose for which restraint is or was authorised under Rule 38(1). Ensuring good order and discipline ceased, at the end of July 2008, to be an approved purpose for using restraint.
Statistics relating to young offender institutions and secure children's homes are not collected in the format requested and obtaining them would require a search through individual records, which could not be carried out without disproportionate cost.
| Reasons for the use of restraint in secure training centres, April 2008 to May 2009 | ||||||
| Escape from custody | Injury to self or others | Damage to property | Incitement to injure or cause damage | Good order and discipline | Total | |
| (1 )Discontinued as a reason for restraint at the end of July 2008. Note: In July 2008, the Court of Appeal ruled that restraint could not be used in secure training centres for the purpose of ensuring good order and discipline (Re C v Secretary of State for Justice (2008) EWCA Civ 882). | ||||||
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether his Department plans to make a submission to the Scottish Executive’s National Conversation consultation on Scotland’s constitutional future. [288956]
Mr. Straw: The Ministry of Justice has not submitted evidence to the Scottish Executive’s National Conversation.
The Commission on Scottish Devolution was established by majority vote in the Scottish Parliament and with the full support of the UK Government. UK Departments submitted evidence to the Commission during its First phase of evidence gathering.
The Commission recently published its Final Report, which can be found here at:
http://www.commissiononscottishdevolution.org.uk/uploads/2009-06-12-csd-final-report-2009fbookmarked.pdf
A Steering Group has been established under the Chairmanship of the Secretary of State for Scotland to help the UK Government and the Scottish Parliament plan how to take forward the Calman recommendations and deliver stronger devolution within a stronger United Kingdom.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many incidents of self-harm by young adult (a) male and (b) female prisoners there were in each year from 2000 to 2005; and if he will make a statement; [288166]
(2) how many incidents of self-harm by juvenile (a) male and (b) female prisoners there were in each year from 2000 to 2003; and if he will make a statement; [288167]
(3) how many incidents of self-harm by adult (a) male and (b) female prisoners were recorded in each year from 2000 to 2003; and if he will make a statement. [288177]
Claire Ward: The information requested in the three questions is combined in the following table. The self-harm incidents are broken down by age and gender and cover the period since 2003, after which improvements in how self-harm is recorded, were introduced. These figures are not directly comparable with those recorded before 2003.
| Under-18 incidents | Young offender incidents | Adult incidents | ||||
| Male | Female | Male | Female | Male | Female | |
| Note: The data presented are drawn from NOMS administrative IT systems and do not include figures for STCs or SCHs. The detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale recording system. While the figures shown have been checked as far as practicable, they must be approximate and not necessarily accurate to the last whole number shown. They are fit to be used for purposes of looking at trends and for comparing the relative magnitude of components. | ||||||
The National Offender Management Service has a broad, integrated and evidence-based prisoner suicide prevention and self harm management strategy that seeks to reduce the distress of all those in prison. This encompasses a wide spectrum of Prison and Department of Health work around such issues as mental health, substance misuse and resettlement. Any prisoner identified as at risk of suicide or self-harm is cared for using the Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT) procedures. Most self harm is not directly life threatening, but nevertheless can be extremely distressing for those who have to deal with it. A prisoner focused care planning system for those at risk, ACCT, has helped prisons manage self harm. There are no easy answers to managing self-harming behaviour but we remain committed to finding ways to reduce it.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent discussions he has had on Shia courts in the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement. [287969]
Bridget Prentice: It is assumed the hon. Member is asking about Sharia councils. Sharia councils do not describe themselves as Sharia ‘courts’ because they do not have powers to enforce their decisions. Sharia councils are not part of the court system in England and Wales. There are a number of Sharia councils in England and Wales that, on a private basis, when the parties consent, apply Sharia principles to reach resolution of personal and contractual disputes. Some councils have several branches in major cities but councils are not unified under one system governing their approach to issues or their administration so their processes and even their interpretation of Sharia principles may differ.
I also refer the hon. Member to an answer given by my noble Friend Lord Bach on 21 May 2009, Official Report, House of Lords, column WA362. The Government have also commissioned a small-scale research project to investigate the number and distribution of Sharia councils in England and Wales. There has not been any recent ministerial discussions on Sharia councils.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what mechanisms are available to police officers issuing a penalty notice for disorder for shop theft in the street to verify (a) the place of residence of the recipient and (b) whether the recipient has had a previous penalty notice for disorder for shop theft. [291695]
Mr. Straw: The mechanisms available to police officers to verify (a) the address of a recipient are documentary evidence such as a passport or driving licence which the recipient might produce; and other sources such as the Police National Computer (PNC) and electoral register and (b) whether a previous Penalty Notice for Disorder has been issued are the PNC and local force penalty notice databases. Police officers on the street have access to this information.
Revised operational guidance to forces on the issue of PNDs for retail theft was issued on 16 July 2009. This makes it clear that before issuing a PND on the street, officers need to establish the place of residence of a recipient and whether a recipient has had a previous penalty notice for shop theft. The guidance can be found at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/criminal-justice-police-act-retail-pnd.htm
12 Oct 2009 : Column 167W—continued
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he plans to publish revised sentencing guidelines for shoplifting offences. [291696]
Mr. Straw: Sentencing guidelines are published by the independent Sentencing Guidelines Council, not by the Government. In December 2008, the Sentencing Guidelines Council published a definitive guideline on theft and burglary in a building other than a dwelling. I understand the Sentencing Guidelines Council has no plans to review the guideline on theft from a shop.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many surplus employees his Department had on the latest date for which figures are available; what expenditure his Department incurred on salaries for surplus employees in the last 12 months; and what roles such employees fulfil. [288027]
Mr. Wills: As of 4 September 2009 the Ministry of Justice had 254 staff that were actively seeking permanent redeployment. This figure comprises both full-time and part-time staff. All staff seeking redeployment are gainfully employed and undertaking roles within the Ministry and so are not defined as surplus. They are engaged in work contributing to the delivery of public services, including core frontline activities, policy and project work and other operational roles.
The salary expenditure for staff seeking redeployment is available from May 2009 when records were centralised. Prior to then salary expenditure can be obtained only at a disproportionate cost. In the last quarter the salary costs of those who were engaged in work but actively seeking permanent redeployment was £2,015,005.
The number of employees seeking redeployment changes regularly as a result of both our success in redeployment,
and the addition of newly displaced staff following organisational change. Since April 2009, 102 redeployees have been found permanent jobs and the average length of time for a person seeking permanent redeployment to be placed in a new job is currently 95 days.
The Ministry of Justice seeks to redeploy equitably, fairly and in a timely manner with our best endeavours to avoid the need for recourse to compulsory redundancy.
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what role the Information Commissioner has in monitoring the use of surveillance techniques by media organisations; what reports the Information Commissioner has received of misuse of such techniques by media organisations in the last two years; and if he will make a statement. [288171]
Mr. Wills: The Information Commissioner's Office is the independent regulator with responsibility for enforcing the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA).
In his evidence session to the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee on 2 September, the Information Commissioner (IC) outlined his responsibility for investigating and punishing “blagging” activity (the practice of tricking organisations into revealing confidential personal information), because this is an offence under section 55 of the DPA. It may also be relevant for the IC to investigate and take the necessary action in cases where personal information collected using surveillance techniques is then not processed in compliance with the Data Protection Principles set out in the DPA. However, enforcement of the Regulatory and Investigation Powers Act 2000 to tackle illegal phone hacking and tapping is the responsibility of the Surveillance Commissioners and not the IC.
In his evidence session, the Information Commissioner confirmed that his Office had received no further evidence about the media's use of private investigators beyond that obtained during the course of the Motorman investigation.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects to be able to publish separate enforcement rates for fines arising from unpaid penalty notices for disorder; and if he will make a statement. [288113]
Bridget Prentice: At present, there are no plans to publish separate enforcement rates for fines arising from unpaid penalty notices for disorder.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 14 July 2009, Official Report, columns 261-2W, on young offender institutions, what percentage of offenders aged (a) 12, (b) 13, (c) 14, (d) 15, (e) 16, (f) 17, (g) 18 and (h) 19 years who had previously been resident in a London borough were detained over 20 miles or 45 minutes travel away from their previous homes at the latest date for which figures are available. [290190]
Maria Eagle: Table A shows the percentage of 15 to 19-year-olds (male and female) who had previously been resident in a London borough and were detained in a prison or young offender institution that was over 20 miles travel away from their home area, as of September 2008. Home area is taken as a prisoner’s home address. If no home address is recorded the court of first committal is used as a proxy.
Table B shows the percentage of 12 to 17-year-olds (male and female) who had previously been resident in a London borough and were detained in Secure Children’s Homes or Secure Training Centres that was over 20 miles away from their home area, as of September 2008. Home area is taken as a young person’s address at the time of sentence. If no address is recorded, the address of the Youth Offending Team that the young person is attached to is used as a proxy. Those aged 18 and 19 are not held in Secure Children’s Homes or Secure Training Centres.
| Table B | ||
| Percentage | ||
| Secure Children’s Homes | Secure Training Centres | |
|
Percentage of 12-year-olds from London area held over 20 miles from home area | ||
|
Percentage of 13-year-olds from London area held over 20 miles from home area | ||
|
Percentage of 14-year-olds from London area held over 20 miles from home area | ||
|
Percentage of 15-year-olds from London area held over 20 miles from home area | ||
|
Percentage of 16-year-olds from London area held over 20 miles from home area | ||
|
Percentage of 17-year-olds from London area held over 20 miles from home area | ||
| n/a: Denotes that no young people of this age were held in Secure Children’s Homes or Secure Training Centres on this date. Source: Youth Justice Board | ||
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 1 July 2009, Official Report, columns 265-7W, on young offender institutions: injuries, how many incidents of (a) self-harm, (b) damage caused by restraint and (c) assault by offenders who had been previously resident in a London borough occurred in each young offender institution in each of the last five years. [290188]
Maria Eagle: The system used within the National Offender Management Service for analysing self harm and assaults information does not include details of prisoners’ home addresses. As a result the information requested is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many children appeared before (a) an adult and (b) a youth magistrates court in the latest year for which figures are available. [289377]
Claire Ward: Information showing the number of juveniles aged 10 to 17 proceeded against at adult magistrates courts and youth magistrates courts in England and Wales for 2007 (latest available) is shown in the following table.
| Defendants aged 10 to 17 proceeded against at adult magistrates courts and youth magistrates courts, England and Wales, 2007( 1,2) | |
| Number | |
| (1) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Source: Evidence and Analysis Unit—Office for Criminal Justice Reform. | |
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what percentage of offenders aged (a) 12, (b) 13, (c) 14, (d) 15, (e) 16, (f) 17, (g) 18 and (h) 19 years who had previously been resident in a London borough and who were released from young offender institutions in each of the last five years were reconvicted within a year for (i) violent and (ii) non-violent crimes. [290191]
Maria Eagle: Juvenile reoffending covers those aged 10 to 17. A release from custody could be from a Secure Training Centre, a Secure Children’s Home or a Young Offender Institution. Data is not broken down by type of release establishment or by individual release establishment. A breakdown of previous residence by location is not available. For information on the latest juvenile reoffending statistics please consult:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/docs/reoffending-juveniles-2007.pdf
Reoffenders that are aged 18 and 19 are included in the adult dataset. As with juveniles a breakdown of previous residence by location is not available. Further information on adult reoffending is available at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/docs/reoffending-adults-2007.pdf
Justine Greening:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 1 July 2009, Official Report, column 269W, on young offenders: sentencing,
what percentage of offenders aged (a) 12, (b) 13, (c) 14, (d) 15, (e) 16, (f) 17, (g) 18 and (h) 19 years who had previously been resident in a London borough and who had been convicted for non-violent crimes were given community sentences in each of the last five years. [290189]
Claire Ward: The available information is shown in the following table. The table shows the percentage of those sentenced to community sentence by age in the last five years, for non-violent indictable offences. Figures for those previously resident in a London borough are not available, as places of residence are not recorded on the court proceedings database. The table shows those sentenced in the Metropolitan and City of London police force areas.
| Percentage of persons sentenced to community sentences for non-violent indictable offences( 1) in the last five years, by age in London police force areas | |||||
| Age | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 |
| (1) This includes all indictable offences not included in the violence against the person offence type. Summary offences have not been included as they are not categorised into violent or non-violent offences Notes: 1. These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. 2. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system. Source: OMS Analytical Services, Ministry of Justice | |||||
The definition of non-violent offences are all those indictable offences not included in the offence type, ‘Violence Against the Person’. Summary offences have not been included as they are not categorised into violent or non-violent offences. This data is presented on the principal offence basis: where an offender has been sentenced for more than one offence the principal offence is the one for which the heaviest sentence was imposed; where the same sentence has been imposed for two or more offences the principal offence is the one for which the statutory maximum is most severe. Data for 2008 will not be available until ‘Sentencing Statistics 2008’ is published.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 171W—continued
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many children were received into a remand institution on a Saturday in the latest year for which figures are available. [289382]
Maria Eagle: The statistics collected by the Youth Justice Board record the number of occasions on which young people have received a custodial remand, rather than the number of individual young people who have been so remanded (these figures are different because a young person may experience more than one period in custody on remand). In the year 1 April 2008 to 31 March 2009 there were 588 episodes of custodial remand which started on a Saturday.
The data have been supplied by the Youth Justice Board and have been drawn from administrative IT
systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing and may be subject to change over time.
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of people aged 17 years who are remanded in custody. [289386]
Maria Eagle: The decision whether to grant bail or to remand a young person to the care of a local authority or to custody is a matter for the courts, which operate within the statutory framework, which is principally set out in the Bail Act 1976.
The Youth Justice Board is seeking to ensure that no young person under 18 is remanded to custody if a workable alternative can be found. It has produced a toolkit, which it intends shortly to update and relaunch, for use in conjunction with Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) for this purpose. The measures that YOTs can take to minimise use of custodial remand include setting up panels to conduct regular reviews of custody decisions; provision of bail support packages; steps to improve relationships with the courts; and remand fostering.
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will undertake an assessment of local variation in the use of custodial remand in relation to children. [289869]
Maria Eagle: The decision whether to grant bail or to remand a young person to the care of a local authority or to custody is a matter for the courts, which operate within the statutory framework, which is principally set out in the Bail Act 1976.
Information on local court practice is produced six-monthly by the Sentencing Guidelines Council. The Youth Justice Board, through communications with sentencers, and performance analysis and support for youth offending teams, is working to support a reduction in the use of custody, including custodial remand, across England and Wales.
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many young offenders aged (a) up to 16 and (b) 17 years of age were sent to custodial institutions (i) on remand and (ii) under sentence in each local authority area in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [289379]
Maria Eagle: The Youth Justice Board collects data by the young person's home Youth Offending Team area (some of which cover more than one local authority) and figures for the period 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009 are provided in the following table.
The data have been supplied by the Youth Justice Board and have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing and may be subject to change over time.
| Remanded | Sentenced | |||||
| Youth Offending Team | Up to 16 | 17 | Total | Up to 16 | 17 | Total |
| Notes: The following Youth Offending Teams cover more than one local authority area: Bournemouth and Poole (Bournemouth and Poole local authorities) Cornwall (Cornwall and Isles of Scilly local authorities) Halton and Warrington (Halton and Warrington local authorities) Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin (Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin local authorities) South Tees (Redcar, Cleveland and Middlesbrough local authorities) Tower Hamlets and City of London (Tower Hamlets and City of London local authorities) Wessex (Isle of Wight, Hampshire, Southampton and Portsmouth local authorities) Worcestershire and Herefordshire (Worcestershire and Herefordshire local authorities). | ||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 178W—continued
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many young offenders aged (a) up to 16 and (b) 17 years of age were held in custodial institutions (i) on remand, (ii) under sentence for crimes of violence and (iii) under sentence for offences not involving violence on the latest date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [289381]
Maria Eagle: The following tables provide the requested information in respect of young people in custody on 26 June 2009.
The data have been supplied by the Youth Justice Board and have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing and may be subject to change over time.
| Age | |||
| (a) Up to 16 | (b)17 | Total | |
A table of violent offences for which young people were recorded as being held in custody under sentence on this date is as follows.
Non-violent offences for which young people were recorded as being held under sentence in custody on this date were as follows:
David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to paragraph 8.30 of the 2008 Independent Review of Restraint: Juvenile Secure Settings, if he will place in the Library a copy of the documentation relating to Adapted C & R piloted in May 2006 in Feltham and Cookham Wood young offenders institutions. [290074]
Maria Eagle: A pilot of juvenile restraint techniques (JRT) for use on young people (15 to 17-year-olds) commenced in May 2006. An interim evaluation report was produced in April 2007 and I have arranged for a copy of this to be placed in the House of Commons Library. Shortly after the completion of this report, the “Independent Review of the Use of Restraint in Juvenile Secure Settings” was announced and a decision was taken to suspend further work on JRT pending the outcome of the review.
The Government’s response to the independent review was published in December 2008 and part of this announced the development of a more comprehensive system of restraint for young people as part of a wider behaviour management system. Piloting of this new system of restraint is expected to begin early next year.
David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to paragraph 8.39 of the 2008 Independent Review of Restraint: Juvenile Secure Settings, if he will place in the Library a copy of the Prison Service review into the case for extending the use of the baton to the young people's estate. [290075]
Maria Eagle: I have arranged for a copy of the Prison Service report, “Review of the Potential Use of the Baton in the Young People’s Estate” to be placed in the House of Commons Library.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment the Office for Criminal Justice Reform undertook in deciding to allocate a grant to the Association of Youth Offending Team Managers for the purposes of building a case management system for youth offenders. [290281]
Maria Eagle: The Youth Justice Board applied for funding in May 2008 for an integrated Youth Offending Team (YOT) case management system to address concerns raised by the Association of YOT Managers and YOT Managers Cymru on the capability of their existing systems. The decision to allocate funding was made by a cross-criminal justice agency board following consideration of the business case and related documentation, a review against agreed investment principles, a technical design review, and an independent review from Gartner on the effectiveness of current case management systems in use by the youth justice system. The project is managed as part of the Youth Justice Board’s wider Wiring Up Youth Justice Programme.
11. Mr. Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much funding per pupil his Department allocated to (a) secondary and (b) primary schools in (i) North Wiltshire constituency and (ii) Normanton constituency for 2009-10. [292202]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The Government allocate funding to local authorities, not by constituency, so we do not hold figures for North Wiltshire or Normanton constituencies. Separate figures are not available for primary and secondary schools as funding is not allocated by phase.
The guaranteed funding per pupil for Wiltshire for 2009-10 is £3,849, and for Wakefield it is £4,022. The amount of Dedicated Schools Grant that local authorities receive is dependant on the number of pupils on roll. Wiltshire has received just over £243 million and Wakefield £182 million for 2009-10.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 182W—continued
14. Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent estimate he has made of rates of illiteracy amongst children of primary school age. [292205]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: It is not appropriate to use the term ‘illiterate’ to describe primary school pupils who are still learning. Primary school standards have never been higher. In 2009 92 per cent. of 11-year-olds achieved level 3 or above in reading, and 94 per cent. in writing. This means they can read a range of texts accurately and independently and their writing is organised, legible and clear. Many of those working below test level at age 11 will have a range of learning difficulties. We have proven, successful programmes like Every Child a Reader and Every Child a Writer in place to support those who are struggling.
15. Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps he plans to take to raise academic standards in secondary schools. [292206]
Mr. Coaker: Secondary school standards have risen substantially since 1997, thanks to excellent leadership and teaching; support from the National Strategies; better use of pupil data; and the ambitious targets schools and local authorities have set for their pupils.
We published our school improvement strategy in the White Paper, ‘Your Child, Your School, Our Future’ on 30 June to build upon the improvements already made and deliver a world class education system.
16. Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent representations he has received on funding for school education for 16 to 19-year-olds; and if he will make a statement. [292207]
Mr. Iain Wright: We have received three representations from schools about their 2009-10 funding allocation since June. These raised queries about the level of their allocation. We will be investing over £2.2 billion in 2009-10, enabling over 400,000 young people to have a place in a school sixth from in 2009-10. This will fund schools to make their vital contribution to deliver the September Guarantee providing an appropriate place in learning for any young person who wants one.
17. Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what discussions he has had with the London borough of Wandsworth on the provision of a secondary school in south Battersea. [292208]
Mr. Coaker: Ministers have not had any discussions with the London Borough of Wandsworth about the provision of a secondary school in south Battersea.
18. Natascha Engel: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on steps to support further education colleges whose enrolment figures have increased as a result of the recession; and if he will make a statement. [292209]
Mr. Iain Wright: I have not recently met the Secretary of State for Business Innovation and Skills on this issue, but we both recognise the vital role FE colleges play in developing the skills and knowledge of young people and adults. Hence, we are investing over £3.5 billion in 2009-10 enabling FE colleges to contribute to the September Guarantee for young people, including an extra £62 million secured in Budget 2009 to deal with the impact of the economic downturn.
19. John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps his Department is taking to ensure that pupils from disadvantaged areas achieve their full potential. [292210]
Mr. Coaker: Over the past decade, all schools and areas have improved their performance substantially—but those with the most deprived cohorts have made the largest gains.
Schools have achieved these results through improved personalisation; through projects like The Extra Mile; and through our successful Academies and National and City Challenge programmes.
In our “Breaking the Link” publication and the Schools White Paper we set out further plans to ensure even greater equity of outcomes.
20. Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much central Government allocated to City of York council for school capital spending in (a) 1996-97 and (b) the latest period for which figures are available. [292212]
Mr. Coaker: £0.8 million pounds was allocated to York in 1996-97. During the current three-year spending review period, we are allocating the city £40.0 million, that is, an average of £13.3 million a year.
21. Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what information he holds on the number of (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in East Lancashire whose premises were constructed before 1914. [292213]
Mr. Coaker: Asset management data, including data on the ages of school buildings, were supplied to my Department by local authorities, most recently in 2006. My Department has not analysed the data at this level of detail within an authority but can provide it by 7 November 2009.
22. Mr. Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps his Department has taken to provide support to young people with communication disabilities within the youth justice system. [292214]
Mr. Coaker: We are working with the Communication Trust to improve awareness and support for young people in the youth justice system with communication needs. Supported by DCSF funding, the Communications Trust is taking forward a programme to improve awareness of the importance of young people’s communication needs in the secure estate and Youth Offending Teams. The trust is developing training for the youth justice workforce and influencing existing workforce programmes and National Occupational Standards.
23. Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what his policy is on the future of testing in the national curriculum; and if he will make a statement. [292215]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: In May, we accepted in full the recommendations of the Expert Group on Assessment on the future of national curriculum assessment and testing. The group was clear that tests at the end of Key Stage 2 were educationally beneficial and vital for public accountability, and so the tests in English and maths will remain in place. We are also continuing and extending our trials of single level tests, and introducing new sample tests for Key Stage 2 science and for Key Stage 3.
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families in how many local authorities the implementation of the Building Schools for the Future programme has been suspended in the absence of a visionary or transformative bid. [291798]
Mr. Coaker: Three Building Schools for the Future projects—Hull, Oldham, and Stoke—have previously been suspended in the pre-procurement phase while the local authorities were asked to re-examine their school estate proposals to ensure that the proposals would make a significant educational impact.
Local authorities are required to demonstrate that their BSF plans are visionary and transformational at two key points in the process. At initial entry, local authorities must submit a robust ‘Readiness to Deliver’ document which explains how their plans will impact on the local educational environment. Once the programme has commenced, they are required to submit a ‘Strategy for Change’ which describes the educational impact of their plans across all of the local schools to benefit from BSF investment. If, at either milestone, it is judged that the local authority is not setting high enough aspirations, they are asked to revise the strategies and resubmit them. This process helps to reduce the need to suspend BSF programmes.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of care leavers were living in suitable accommodation (a) in total and (b) in each of the smallest geographical areas for which figures are available in each year since 2000; and if he will make a statement. [291190]
Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 14 September 2009]: The information for the years 2004-08 has been placed in the House Libraries. Earlier years can be provided only at a disproportionate cost.
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many children have been taken into alternative care as a result of low parental income in each of the last five years. [291853]
Dawn Primarolo: Children are not taken into care because of parental low income.
A care order cannot be issued for a child simply because their parents are on a low income. Section 31 of the Children Act 1989 specifies that, to issue a care order, the court has to be satisfied that:
(A) The child is suffering, or is likely to suffer, significant harm; and
(B) That the harm, or likelihood of harm, is attributable to:
the care given to the child (or likely to be given to him if the order were not made) not being what it would be reasonable to expect a parent to give to him; or
the child’s being beyond parental control.
In all cases of children being taken into care on care orders, these conditions will have been fulfilled to the satisfaction of a court.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) what review processes are in place to monitor the care of children with disabilities in long-term institutional care; [289573]
(2) what plans he has to estimate the number of children with disabilities in long-term institutional care. [289574]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: Local authorities have to develop care plans setting out how they intend to respond to the assessed needs of disabled children who are living away from their family and are being looked after by the local authority.
All care plans must be kept under review so that progress can be monitored and revised as circumstances
change. Review meetings should be chaired by the Independent Reviewing Officer (IRO) and conducted in accordance with minimum statutory requirements: within 28 days, three months and six monthly intervals after placement. Reviews should ensure that there is no undue delay in implementing the actions set out in a child's plan and that the child's views are taken in to account.
Children's Homes, including those who care for children with disabilities, must comply with the Children's Homes Regulations Act 2001 and the National Minimum Standards for Children's Homes and are registered, inspected and regulated by Ofsted.
The regulations and standards make specific reference to where children with disabilities are cared for in the home, with the overarching ethos being that disabled children in the home should be able to receive the same opportunities as other children within the home.
There are no plans to estimate the number of disabled children who are in residential settings.
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many people have been disciplined for misuse of data collected for the ContactPoint database in each year since data collection for that database began. [283329]
Dawn Primarolo: All organisations using ContactPoint must complete organisational accreditation before their staff can be granted access to ContactPoint. Part of the organisational accreditation involves ensuring that appropriate disciplinary procedures are in place in the employing organisation should it be necessary to invoke them in relation to any inappropriate use of ContactPoint.
The use of ContactPoint is monitored at both national and local level. Local authorities are responsible for investigating suspected misuse within their user base. A central DCSF team also reviews use of the system and data by local authorities and national partners. If unusual activity by users within a local authority area or a national partner organisation were to be detected by regular auditing, or was suspected or reported, the local authority or national partner ContactPoint Management Team must suspend the user account, notify the user’s manager and carry out an immediate investigation using local policies and procedures.
In the eventuality that there was misuse of data held on ContactPoint, disciplinary action would be a matter for the employer of the individual concerned. No one has been disciplined for misuse of data, however, through DCSF auditing, we have identified five instances where correct procedures were not followed by ContactPoint users. Typically, these were users who searched for records, for example, those of family members, in order to ‘test’ the system, in what they believed was a ‘safe’ way, before undertaking work such as apply shields to records that need them. All cases were immediately investigated and appropriate action has been taken. One of these five instances resulted in an individual being disciplined. The incident, although inappropriate, did not lead to ContactPoint data being compromised and there is no evidence that any of these instances indicated malicious intent, posed any risk to the security of children’s records or constituted misuse of data on ContactPoint.
We have always said that we will carefully monitor the activity of early adopter practitioners to identify any further improvements that may be required. In the light of these instances, we further strengthened our training and guidance materials on correct procedures and use of ContactPoint. This demonstrates that the stringent security processes we have in place are working.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of registered childminders were (a) male and (b) female in each local authority area in the North West in each year since 1997. [289292]
Dawn Primarolo: The Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey provides estimates of the proportion of childminders(1) who are male and female in England. Estimates can be provided of the number and proportion of male and female staff by region for 2006 and 2007, however these data are not available at the local authority level, or for earlier years. Table 1 provides the number and proportion of male and female childminders in England from 1998 until 2007. These data are not available for years prior to 1998. Table 2 provides the number and proportion of male and female childminders in the North West in 2006 and 2007.
(1) The data provided refer to the number and proportion of working childminders. Childminders who were registered but not working are not included.
| Table 1: Sex of childminders in England | ||||
| Male childminders | Female childminders | |||
| Proportion of childminders( 1) | Number of male childminders( 2) | Proportion of childminders( 1) | Number of female childminders( 2) | |
| (1) Proportions may not sum to 100 per cent. due to rounding. (2) All numbers provided have been rounded. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100 if they are greater than 1,000, to the nearest 50 if the number is 100 to 999 and to the nearest 10 if the number is below 100. | ||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 188W—continued
| Table 2: Sex of childminders in the north west | ||||
| Male childminders | Female childminders | |||
| Proportion of childminders( 1) | Number of male childminders( 2) | Proportion of childminders( 1) | Number of female childminders( 2) | |
| (1 )Proportions may not sum to 100 per cent. due to rounding. (2 )All numbers provided have been rounded. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100 if they are greater than 1,000, to the nearest 50 if the number is 100 to 999 and to the nearest 10 if the number is below 100. (3) As this survey is based on a sample of providers in England, when the sample is broken down by region the number of childminders interviewed in each region is relatively small. Therefore, this does not mean that there were no male childminders in the north west in 2007, only that no male childminders were selected in the sample of providers within the north west region for the 2007 survey. | ||||
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many and what proportion of local authorities have a childminding network; [289325]
(2) how many and what proportion of childminders are part of a local authority childminding network. [289326]
Dawn Primarolo: In January 2009, there were 72 (48 per cent.) out of 150 local authorities with at least one childminding network which received Government funding to deliver the free entitlement. The DCSF only receives information on the number of childminding networks which receive funding to deliver the free entitlement. Other childminding networks may exist but the Department has no information on these as they do not deliver the free entitlement.
Information on the number of childminders that are part of a local authority childminding network is not collected centrally.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of childcare staff in nurseries had an appropriate (a) level 3 or higher and (b) level 5 or higher qualification in each of the last five years. [289795]
Mr. Coaker: The Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey collects information on staff qualifications that are relevant to working with children and young people. Data on the number and proportion of paid staff in maintained nursery schools holding (a) at least a level 3 and (b) at least a level 5 qualification is shown in the following table. 2007 is the most recent year for which this information is available. Data on the number of nursery staff by qualification level in 2003 is not available.
| Proportion and number of paid staff in maintained nursery schools qualified to at least level 3 and at least level 5, England | |||||
| 2007 | 2006 | 2003 | |||
| Proportion of staff (percentage) | Number of staff | Proportion of staff (percentage) | Number of staff | Proportion of staff (percentage) | |
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate he has made of the average number of hours worked per week by (a) childcarers in maintained settings, (b) childcarers in private, voluntary and independent nurseries and (c) childminders in each year since 2003. [289798]
Mr. Coaker: The Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey estimated that staff working in full day care in Children’s Centres worked an average (mean) of 34 hours a week in 2007, compared with an average of 18 hours a week for staff in sessional settings. Data for all child care and early years’ providers for each year available is shown in the following table.
| Average number of hours worked per week by staff in child care and early years provision in maintained schools | ||||
| 2003 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | |
| Notes: 1. Children’s centres were included in the survey for the first time in 2006, therefore data is not available for previous years. 2. After school and holiday clubs were sampled differently in 2005 and comparable figures for this year are not available. 3. Early years settings in maintained schools were not included in the 2005 survey. | ||||
In 2007 full day care staff in privately owned settings worked an average of 35 hours a week, compared with 27 hours for full day care staff in settings under voluntary ownership. 2007 data for all child care providers available is shown in the following table.
| Average number of hours worked per week by child care staff, by ownership of setting, 2007 | |||||
| Private | Voluntary | Local authority | School/college | Other | |
| Note: Data for other providers are not available by type of ownership. | |||||
In 2006 full day care staff in privately owned settings worked an average of 35 hours a week, compared with 26 hours for full day care staff in settings under voluntary ownership. 2006 data for all child care providers available is shown in the following table.
| Average number of hours worked per week by staff in child care providers, by ownership of setting, 2006 | |||||
| Private | Voluntary | Local authority | School/college | Other | |
| Note: Data for other providers are not available by type of ownership. | |||||
Data prior to 2006 is not available for the average number of hours worked per week by staff in child care providers, by ownership of setting. The Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey collects information on the average(mean) number of hours per week that childminders accept children for during term time and during school holidays (i.e. the time open for, but the childminder may not necessarily actually be working the whole time). This information comes closest to representing what a typical weekly shift is for a childminder. Data for each year available is shown in the following table.
| Average number of hours per week that children are accepted by a childminder | ||
| Term time | School holidays | |
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of childminders have been deregistered for each reason for deregistration in each year since 2003. [289800]
Dawn Primarolo: These are matters for Ofsted. The Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to the hon. Member and copies of her replies have been placed in the Libraries.
Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 1 September 2009:
Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, for response.
Table A shows figures for the number of childminders who have resigned or had their registrations cancelled. Figures showing cancelled and resigned childminders are retrieved from a snapshot of the Ofsted database at the end of each financial year: 2003-04, 2004-05, 2005-06, 2006-07 and 2008-09. Figures showing the total number of childminders are taken from a snapshot of the Ofsted database at the start of each financial year.
Although Ofsted records reasons for cancellation and resignation on an individual basis, the information is not collated under categories, so it is not possible to produce aggregated data from it.
A copy of this reply has been sent to Rt Hon Dawn Primarolo MP, Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.
| Table A: Numbers and proportions of childminders deregistered in each financial year since 2003/04 | |||||||
| Childminders | |||||||
| Cancelled | Resigned | Total cancelled or resigned | |||||
| Financial year | Number of childminders at the beginning of the financial year | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage |
| Note: Percentages in the total column may not equal the sum of the other columns, because the figures are rounded. | |||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 192W—continued
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what progress has been made towards meeting the target of each full daycare setting being led by a graduate and all childcare staff being qualified to level 3 by 2015. [289802]
Mr. Coaker: The Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey collects information on staff qualifications that are relevant to working with children and young people. The qualifications are grouped together in the levels that they have been accredited with by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority; qualifications at level 6 or above are at degree level. The 2007 survey found that 16 per cent. of full day care settings employ at least one member of staff with qualifications at level 6 or above. The survey also found that 64 per cent. of all staff (child care staff, early years staff and childminders) held at least a level 3 qualification.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many and what proportion of (a) day care settings and (b) childminders in Basingstoke have been awarded a rating of (i) outstanding, (ii) good, (iii) satisfactory and (iv) inadequate following an inspection by Ofsted in each year since 2003; [289804]
(2) how many and what proportion of childminders were deemed inadequate by Ofsted in the 10 per cent. (a) most and (b) least deprived local authority areas in 2008-09; [290195]
(3) how many and what proportion of childminders were deemed inadequate by Ofsted in each year since inspections began; [290196]
(4) how many and what proportion of day care settings in the 10 per cent. (a) most and (b) least deprived local authority areas were awarded ratings of inadequate following an Ofsted inspection in 2008-09; [290197]
(5) how many and what proportion of day care settings were awarded ratings of inadequate following an Ofsted inspection in each year for which records are available. [290198]
Dawn Primarolo: These are matters for Ofsted. The Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert, will write to the hon. Member and copies of her replies will be placed in the Libraries.
Letter from Miriam Rosen, dated 10 August 2009:
Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to Ofsted for response. As Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills, Christine Gilbert, is currently on leave, I am responding on her behalf.
Tables A to F below show the inspection grades of day care settings and childminders in Basingstoke since 2003.
The figures for each period are taken from a snapshot of data at the end of each financial year. These data only include providers that were active at this point. Additionally, the figures only count the most recent inspection outcome for each provision at the time of the snapshot, provided their inspection reports had been published or quality assured and not withdrawn from publication.
Please note that the inspection judgements requested cover three inspection cycles. Those inspections carried out in the inspection cycle from April 2003 to end-March 2005 inspected the quality of provision against the National Standards for under-eights and were graded on a three point scale. Those from April 2005 to end-August 2008 were also inspected against the National Standards, but graded on the four point scale outlined in the question. It is not possible to operate a simple read-across approach from a three-to a four-point scale. Care should be taken when interpreting data for ‘childcare on domestic premises’ as the numbers are so small.
There was a further change of inspection framework following the introduction of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) in September 2008. At this point, Ofsted also changed the way in which we record day-care provision, categorising providers as childcare on domestic and non-domestic premises. These categories broadly relate to the previous category of group day-care provision. The data for September 2008 to March 2009 are presented separately and, as above, it is not possible to operate a simple read-across between inspection frameworks.
Please note that the selection of provision for inspection each year is not random, so care needs to be taken when using the data.
A copy of this reply has been sent to right hon. Dawn Primarolo MP, Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, and will be placed in the Library of both Houses.
| Table A: Inspection grades from inspections of childminders in Basingstoke, financial years 2003-05 | |||||||
| Good | Percentage | Satisfactory | Percentage | Unsatisfactory | Percentage | Total | |
| Table B: Inspection grades from inspections of childminders in Basingstoke, 2005-06 to end-August 2008 | |||||||||
| Outstanding | Percentage | Good | Percentage | Satisfactory | Percentage | Inadequate | Percentage | Total | |
| Table C: Inspection grades from inspections of childminders in Basingstoke, September 2008 to end-March 2009 | |||||||||
| Outstanding | Percentage | Good | Percentage | Satisfactory | Percentage | Inadequate | Percentage | Total | |
| Table D: Inspection grades from inspections of day care providers in Basingstoke, financial years 2003-05 | |||||||
| Good | Percentage | Satisfactory | Percentage | Unsatisfactory | Percentage | Total | |
| Table E: Inspection grades from inspections of day care providers in Basingstoke, 2005-06 to end-August 2008 | |||||||||
| Outstanding | Percentage | Good | Percentage | Satisfactory | Percentage | Inadequate | Percentage | Total | |
| Table F: Inspection grades from inspections of childcare on domestic and non-domestic premises in Basingstoke, September 2008 to end-March 2009 | |||||||||
| Outstanding | Percentage | Good | Percentage | Satisfactory | Percentage | Inadequate | Percentage | Total | |
Please note that percentages are rounded so may not add up to 100 per cent.
Data refers to financial years but is also split for 2008-09 due to the change of inspection framework provision types on the 1 September 2008.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average number of staff vacancies in (a) maintained nurseries, (b) private, voluntary and independent nurseries and (c) Sure Start children's centres was in each year since 2006. [290202]
Mr. Coaker: The Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey collects information on recruitment and staff vacancies in child care and early year’s providers. Table 1 shows the proportion of full day care providers that were trying to recruit for vacancies in 2007, by type of staff and ownership of the provision. 2007 is the most recent year for which this information is available.
| Table 1: Number of vacancies full day care providers are trying to recruit for, by staff type and type of ownership, 2007 | |||||
| Percentage | |||||
| Private | Voluntary | Local authority | School/college | Other | |
| Note: Percentages may not sum to 100 per cent. due to ‘don’t know’ responses or rounding. | |||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 194W—continued
Table 2 shows the proportion of full day care providers that were trying to recruit for vacancies in 2006, by type of staff and ownership of the provision. Data for previous years is not available in the format requested.
| Table 2: Proportion of full day care providers trying to recruit for vacancies, by staff type and ownership, 2006 | |||||
| Percentage | |||||
| Private | Voluntary | Local authority | School/college | Other | |
| Note: Percentages may not sum to 100 per cent. due to ‘don’t know’ responses or rounding. | |||||
The number of full day care providers in children's centres who were trying to recruit staff was too low for analysis to be carried out.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of carers in daycare settings for children were from (a) white and (b) black and minority ethnic groups in each year since 2003. [290360]
Dawn Primarolo: The Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey collects information on the ethnicity of staff in the child care and early years workforce. In 2007 only childminders and early years providers in maintained schools were asked about the ethnicity of their staff. Data on the ethnicity of staff in daycare settings was not collected. Table 1 shows the proportion of staff from white and black and minority ethnic groups by setting in 2007, the latest year for which this information is available.
| Table 1: Ethnicity of staff in workforce in England, 2007 | ||||
| Proportion of BME staff (percentage) | Number of BME staff( 1) | Proportion of staff not from a BME group (percentage) | Number of staff not from a BME group | |
| (1 )All numbers provided have been rounded. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100 if they are greater than 1,000, to the nearest 50 if the number is 100-999 and to the nearest 10 if the number is below 100. Note: Figures on the number of staff from a BME group and the proportion and number not from a BME group have been estimated using the figures for the proportion of staff from a BME group and the overall paid number of staff. | ||||
Data on the number and proportion of staff in daycare settings from white and black and minority ethnic groups for each year available since 2003 is shown as follows.
| Table 2: Ethnicity of staff working in full day care settings in England | |||
| 2003 | 2005 | 2006 | |
|
Average proportion of staff per setting not from a BME group (percentage) | |||
| Note: Full day care figures for 2005 and 2006 on the average proportion of staff per setting not from a BME group and the total number of staff not from a BME group have been estimated using the figures for staff from a BME group and the overall number of paid staff. | |||
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many and what proportion of childminders were from (a) white and (b) black and minority ethnic groups in each year since 2003; [290361]
(2) how many and what proportion of childminders were from black and minority ethnic groups in (a) 2007 and (b) 2008. [289389]
Dawn Primarolo: The 2007 Childcare and Early Years providers Survey estimated that 7 per cent. of childminders(1) working in England were from a black and minority ethnic (BME) background, a total of approximately 3,900 individuals.
Data for each year are shown in the following table.
| BME Childminders | Childminders not from a BME group | |||
| Proportion of childminders( 2 ) (%) | Number of BME childminders( 3) | Proportion of childminders( 2) (%) | Number of childminders not from a BME group( 3) | |
| (1) The data provided refers to the number and proportion of working childminders. Childminders who were registered but not working are not included. (2) Proportions may not sum to 100 per cent. due to rounding. (3) All numbers provided have been rounded. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100 if they are greater than 1000, to the nearest 50 if the number is 100-999 and to the nearest 10 if the number is below 100. | ||||
Data for 2008 will be available when the 2008 Childcare and Early Years Providers' Survey is published later this year.
Childminders remain the child carers of choice for thousands of families because of the high quality, flexible and responsive service that they offer, but we are continuing to work closely with sector partners (including the National Childminding Association) to strengthen their professional development and the quality of their provision. We are keen to see a diverse and vibrant childcare sector which includes childminders from a range of minority ethnic backgrounds. We will work with Ofsted and the National Childminding Association (NCMA) to look at the factors which are leading to childminders from a BME backgrounds to choose to leave the childminding profession.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of child care (a) places and (b) providers there were in the (i) maintained and (ii) private, voluntary and independent sectors in (A) Hampshire and (B) England on the latest date for which figures are available. [290365]
Dawn Primarolo: Ofsted maintains the new registers established under the Childcare Act 2006. The chief inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to the hon. Member and copies of her replies have been placed in the House Libraries.
Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 8 September 2009:
Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, for response.
Table A provides figures for the total number of childcare providers registered with Ofsted and the maximum number of childcare places these providers offer in Hampshire and England as at 31 March 2009 and 30 June 2009. These figures represent 100 per cent of the childcare registered by Ofsted. Please note that we do not classify providers as ‘maintained’.
| Table A: Number of registered child care providers and maximum number of places offered | |||
| Area | Total number of providers registered | Maximum number of registered places offered by providers for children under eight | |
Please note that, as of 1 September 2008, the government introduced new arrangements for the registration of childcare providers through the Childcare Act 2006. There are now two registers: the Early Years Register (EYR) and the Childcare Register. The Childcare Register is subdivided into two parts, the compulsory part (CCR) and the voluntary part (VCR). Childcare providers may be registered on any combination of the EYR, CCR and VCR, depending on the age of the children in their care and the type of care offered. Those providers who care for children from birth to the 31 August following their fifth birthday must register on the EYR, unless they are in a category that is exempt from registration. Providers who care for older children who are under eight must be registered on the CCR. Other childcare providers, for example those caring for children over the age of eight, or caring for a child in the child’s own home, are not required to register with Ofsted, but may join the VCR.
Ofsted only sets the maximum number of places for childcare provision registered on the EYR and the CCR. Numbers of registered places therefore indicate the maximum number of children aged under eight that may be present at any one time. The figures are not the number of places occupied, nor the number of children who may benefit from receiving places through providers offering sessions at different times of the day.
The maximum number of places figures as at 31 March 2009 were calculated by combining the maximum number of places recorded individually for both the Early Years Register (EYR) and the compulsory part of the Childcare Register (CCR) for each provider. As explained when Ofsted published the March 2009 figures, there is a strong possibility that these figures may be higher than the true overall maximum number of places, due to the duplication of places on both registers for some providers. Ofsted omitted the maximum numbers of childcare places as at 30 June 2009 from the figures published in July 2009, explaining that work was underway to improve the quality of these data. Ofsted will publish the maximum number of childcare places in the next childcare providers and places statistical release in October 2009, and in my Annual Report 2008/09, which will be published in November 2009.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 198W—continued
A copy of this reply has been sent to Rt Hon Dawn Primarolo MP, Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of childcare staff had childcare qualifications which were obtained overseas in each of the last five years. [290400]
Mr. Coaker: The Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey collects information on staff qualifications that are relevant to working with children and young people. The percentage of paid staff in England holding an overseas qualification for each year available is shown in the following table. Information on the number of paid staff is not available.
| Table 1: Proportion of all paid staff holding overseas qualifications | |||
| Percentage | |||
| 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | |
| Notes: 1. Children's centres were included in the survey for the first time in 2006; therefore data is not available for previous years. 2. After school and holiday clubs were sampled differently in 2005 and comparable figures for this year are not available. 3. Early years settings in maintained schools were not included in the 2005 survey. | |||
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many registered childminders there were in each region in each quarter of the last year for which figures are available. [290460]
Dawn Primarolo: The information requested is shown in the table.
| Number of registered childminders in each quarter of the last year( 1) | ||||
| As at end: | ||||
| Government office region | August 2008( 2) | December 2008( 3) | March 2009 | June 2009 |
| Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 100. Totals may not add up due to rounding. 2. Latest position before new arrangements were introduced in September 2008. 3. First position since new arrangements were introduced in September 2008. Source: Ofsted | ||||
New Registers, the Early Years Register and the General Childcare Register (including its Voluntary Register), were introduced under the Childcare Act 2006 as part of the Government's reforms to simplify early years regulation and inspection. From 1 September 2008, Ofsted started to record providers in line with these new legal requirements.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of carers in daycare settings for children were male in each year since 1997. [290500]
Dawn Primarolo: The 2007 Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey estimated that the average proportion of male staff working in full day care settings in England was 2 per cent. In total, there was 2,900 male staff working in full day care settings in England. Data for each year available is shown in the following table.
| Table: Male staff working in full day care settings in England | ||
| Average proportion of male staff per setting (%) | Total number of male staff( 1) | |
| (1) All numbers provided have been rounded. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100 if they are greater than 1,000, to the nearest 50 if the number is 100-999 and to the nearest 10 if the number is below 100. | ||
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps the Government has taken to ensure an adequate number of free nursery places from autumn 2009. [291524]
Dawn Primarolo: Section 6 of the Childcare Act 2006 places a new duty on all local authorities to secure—so far as is reasonably practicable—sufficient child care to meet the needs of parents (in particular those on low incomes or with disabled children) in their area.
Local authorities are also legally required to secure a free Government-funded early education place (currently for 12.5 hours per week over a minimum of 38 weeks per year) for every three and four-year-old in their area. The offer will be extended to 15 hours per week, delivered more flexibly to better suit families' needs, by September 2010. From September 2009, most local authorities, including Coventry, are offering the increased entitlement to 25 per cent. of their most disadvantaged three and four-year-olds, as part of the phasing in of the full extension by 2010.
In addition, the Department is working with Government offices to support all local authorities to roll out an offer of free, Government-funded, early learning and care to 15 per cent. of the most disadvantaged two-year-olds in their area from September 2009.
Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether the £671,000 grant allocated to Gloucester City Council by his Department from the workplace nurseries capital initiative has been repaid. [292174]
Dawn Primarolo: Gloucestershire local authority was allocated £671,770 capital funding for workplace nurseries in 2008-09. This formed part of the main capital block of the Sure Start, early years and child care grant and contributed to the authority’s total allocation of £7,167,636 in that block.
Funding in this block is not ring-fenced and the authority has the freedom to decide how much to spend on each area supported by the grant, in line with local needs and priorities.
Local authorities claim their capital funding quarterly throughout the year and should only claim for what they have spent. The Department then makes adjustments based on audited returns. The audited returns for 2008-09 are not yet due, and therefore we do not have information on how much has been spent by authorities in that year.
The Department allows the carry-forward of unspent capital annually until the end of 2010-11 financial year.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how much his Department has allocated to the Together for Children programme in 2010-11; [289308]
(2) how much funding his Department has allocated to Together for Children (a) in each year since its establishment and (b) for 2009-10; [289339]
(3) how much has been allocated to local authorities to employ Serco in supporting the implementation of the Sure Start programme in (a) each of the last three years and (b) 2010-11. [289307]
Mr. Coaker: Together for Children, a consortium of Serco, Tempus Resourcing Ltd, 4Children and Continyou, was contracted as the Department's delivery partner for Sure Start Children's Centres in October 2006 to provide support to local authorities to plan and deliver their children's centre programmes. The following table gives details of the cost of the contract for each year since its commencement. The costs of the contract are met centrally by the Department. The Department has allocated approximately £7.2 billion to local authorities in capital and revenue funding for Sure Start Children's Centres and predecessor Sure Start Local Programmes since the inception of the programme.
| Total cost (excluding VAT) | |
| (£ million) | |
| (1) Estimated costs on current workplans | |
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recovery services are available to support child victims of violence, abuse, neglect and maltreatment. [289572]
Dawn Primarolo: Services to support the recovery of child victims of violence or maltreatment are provided by a variety of statutory and third sector organisations. The type of service required will depend on the needs of the child and the way in which the violence or harm may have had an effect on their health and development.
Where the child has been judged to be at continuing risk of significant harm and is the subject of a child protection plan, local authority children's social care has lead responsibility for implementing the plan. In these circumstances, the services required are most likely to be provided by the local authority, health, voluntary and independent sectors.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many Sure Start children’s centres have been built in each month of 2009. [289318]
Dawn Primarolo:
At the end of July 2009 a total of 135 Sure Start Children’s Centres were designated across
England in 2009. The following table gives the number of children’s centres designated in each month.
| Month | Number of Sure Start Children’s Centres delivered |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 202W—continued
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) what estimate he has made of the number of Sure Start Children’s Centres to be operational in 2010; [291545]
(2) how many Sure Start Children’s Centres have (a) opened and (b) closed in (i) Jarrow constituency, (ii) South Tyneside, (iii) the North East and (iv) England in each year since the inception of Sure Start centres; [291547]
(3) how much capital his Department has provided for Sure Start children’s centres in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England in each year since the establishment of Sure Start; [291805]
(4) how many outreach workers have been employed in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England in each year since 1997. [291546]
Mr. Coaker: We are on track to achieve our target of at least 3,500 Sure Start children’s centres by March 2010, offering access to services for all children under five and their families. As of 31 July 2009, there were 3,052 centres operational in England, providing access to services for over 2.4 million children and their families.
The following table gives details of how many centres have opened in (i) Jarrow constituency, (ii) South Tyneside, (iii) the North East and (iv) England in each year since the inception of Sure Start children’s centres. To date, no centres have been closed.
| Table 1: Children’s centres opened | ||||
| Jarrow | South Tyneside | North East | England | |
The Department allocates capital and revenue funding for children’s centres and their predecessor Sure Start local programmes to local authorities. It is for local authorities to decide how to allocate funding between individual centres. The following table contains details of the capital allocations for South Tyneside, the North East and England in each of the years since the inception of the Sure Start programme.
| Table 2: Capital funding | |||
| £ | |||
| South Tyneside | North East | England | |
| (1) The first Sure Start Local Programmes (SSLPs) were set up in 1999-2000. SSLPs received a single capital allocation for the period 1999-2000 to 2005-06. (2) Sure Start children’s centres were introduced from 2003-04. All former SSLPs have now become children’s centres. Capital funding for the Sure Start children’s centres capital programme was made available from 2003-04. (3) The 2006-07 and 2007-08 allocations are for the wider main capital block and includes funding for child care sustainability and extended schools, during these years local authorities had the flexibility to decide how much of their total capital allocation to spend on children’s centres and were not required to provide a breakdown of the funding provided for children’s centres. | |||
From 2006-07 children’s centres capital formed part of the wider main capital funding block. From 2008-09 the block comprised of funding for children’s centres, early years provision, child care and integrated projects. Funding in the main capital block is not ring-fenced and local authorities have the freedom to decide how much of their total capital allocation to spend on children’s centres in line with local priorities.
The Department does not collect information on the number of outreach workers employed by children’s centres. Staffing levels are a matter for local management by local authorities and their partner agencies.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many child care settings provided as part of a Sure Start children's centre have closed in the last 12 months. [289311]
Dawn Primarolo: We do not collect this information. Local authorities are responsible for ensuring there is sufficient child care for working parents in their areas. The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) will continue to support local authorities to carry out their sufficiency duties to ensure that there is an appropriate range of child care provision that meets the needs of different families in each area. We remain committed to ensuring that high quality child care is available for the most disadvantaged families, and children's centres play a pivotal role in supporting this aim.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many further Sure Start children’s centres are planned for (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire; and when he expects all such centres to be operational. [289421]
Dawn Primarolo:
Hertfordshire local authority currently has 51 Sure Start Children’s Centres offering services to approximately 42,400 children, with a further 31 planned to be delivered by March 2010 in order to provide universal coverage of children’s centre services for children under five and their families. Of the 31 planned centres,
four will be located in Dacorum. There are no further centres planned for the Hemel Hempstead constituency.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many Sure Start children's centres were operating in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire on the latest date for which figures are available. [289635]
Mr. Coaker: As of July 2009 Hertfordshire Local Authority has 51 Sure Start Children's Centres offering services to approximately 42,400 children under five and their families. Of these seven are located in Hemel Hempstead constituency and six in Dacorum.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of Sure Start children’s centres have (a) a full-time manager and (b) a manager shared with other children’s centres. [289322]
Dawn Primarolo: The Department does not collect this information. Local authorities have strategic responsibility for the management of Sure Start Children’s Centres and the freedom and flexibility to establish management arrangements that are appropriate to the local context and the needs of their communities, especially taking into account the levels of disadvantage.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether his Department has issued any recent guidance on the recommended number of outreach workers employed in each Sure Start children's centre in the most deprived communities. [289323]
Dawn Primarolo: The latest guidance on the recommended number of outreach workers employed in each Sure Start children's centre serving the most deprived communities is in ‘Sure Start Children's Centres: Phase 3 Planning and Delivery’, issued by the Department in November 2007. This suggests that in the most disadvantaged areas teams should include at least three outreach workers per children's centre. It is for local authorities, working with their children's trust partners, to determine staffing levels in each centre based on an assessment of local needs.
Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps he is taking to increase the participation of community and voluntary sector organisations in Children’s Trusts. [289698]
Mr. Coaker:
The Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Bill 2009 currently before Parliament will enable third sector organisations to become formal members of the Children’s Trust Board. Subject to consultation, statutory guidance will make clear that every Children’s Trust Board should include third sector representation. Additionally, we propose to require through regulations that the voluntary, private and independent
sector must be consulted by the Children’s Trust Board on the preparation of the Children and Young People’s Plan.
Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what sanctions he will use against partner organisations which do not meet the performance standards for Children's Trusts. [289699]
Dawn Primarolo: Comprehensive area assessment will provide an overview of how successfully local organisations are working individually and together to improve outcomes for children and young people in their area. Where performance standards are unacceptable, the Government will agree appropriate action with the relevant bodies. Where there is critical or sustained underperformance, the Secretary of State has the power to intervene in a local authority (via section 497A of the Education Act 1996 and section 50 of the Children Act 2004).
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average pupil-to-teacher ratio maintained (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency has been in each year since 2004-05. [291440]
Mr. Coaker: The following table provides the pupil:teacher ratio in local authority maintained primary and secondary schools in Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency in each January from 2004 to 2009.
| Pupil:teacher ratios in local authority maintained( 1) primary and secondary schools, January 2004 to 2009, Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency | ||
| Primary | Secondary | |
| (1) Excludes academies and city technology colleges. Source: School Census | ||
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average class size was for (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in Dacorum (i) in 1997 and (ii) at the latest date for which figures are available. [289441]
Mr. Coaker: The information requested is shown in the table.
| Average class size( 1) of primary and secondary schools, 1997 and 2009, Dacorum | ||||||
| Primary( 2) | Secondary( 2, 3) | |||||
| Number of pupils | Number of classes | Average class size | Number of pupils | Number of classes | Average class size | |
| (1) One teacher classes as taught during a single selected period in each school on the day of the census in January. (2) Includes middle schools as deemed. (3) Includes CTCs and academies. Note: Pupil numbers rounded to the nearest 10. Source: School Census. | ||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 206W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many staff have (a) been dismissed and (b) had their contract terminated by his Department and its predecessors in each of the last five years; what the reason was in each case; and what the severance costs in relation to (i) dismissal and (ii) contract termination were in each such year. [290536]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: Staff may be dismissed for poor performance, poor attendance or misconduct, and the contract of employment terminated. Information for the Department and its predecessors in relation to dismissals for performance, attendance or misconduct is set out in the following table. Totals of less than five are suppressed on grounds of confidentiality.
| Number of staff dismissed | |
Staff may also be dismissed in law when a fixed term contract terminates at the end of the contract period and is not renewed is not included in the table. That information is not held in the format requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Information about the costs of terminating contracts is not held in the format requested and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Staff who are dismissed do not receive severance.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many (a) mobile telephones and (b) Blackberrys were issued to staff of his Department in each of the last five years; and how many of these were issued to (i) new staff and (ii) existing staff following the (A) loss or (B) theft of a previous device. [290531]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The information as requested is not held centrally within the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF). To respond fully would involve an information collection exercise which would exceed the recommended disproportionate cost threshold.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of female senior civil servants in his Department have worked part-time in each year since his Department was established. [289801]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: Information for the Department since its creation on 28 June 2007 is set out in the following table.
| Number of SCS part-time women | Proportion (Percentage) | |
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what flexi-time arrangements were available to staff of his Department and its predecessors in each of the last five years; and how many staff participated in such arrangements in each such year. [290538]
Mr. Coaker: The information is available within the Department's annual reports on the DCSF website
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/aboutus/reports/
The Department offer a range of flexible work arrangements to all employees including compressed hours, flexitime, home working, job sharing, partial retirement, part-time working and part-year working. Employees from Grade 6 to Executive Assistant can work flexitime and employees at Grades 6 and 7 were added to these arrangements from 8 September 2008, however, these arrangements are not available to members of the Senior Civil Service. All employees can agree with their line managers to work from home occasionally and 64 per cent. have broadband access to the Department's systems through authorised encryption.
Records of hours worked are held locally and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate he has made of the average length of employment of staff of his Department at each Civil Service payband. [290534]
| Pay band | Estimated average length of employment (years) |
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many staff there were in (a) his Department’s predecessor in 1997 and (b) his Department on the latest date for which figures are available. [292057]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: Staffing information for the Department for Children Schools and Families and its predecessor in 1997, Department for Education and Employment, is published on the Civil Service website at:
http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/who/statistics/index.aspx
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with reference to the answer of 25 November 2008, Official Report, column 1423W, on departmental marketing, how many staff in his Department are responsible for branding activity; and what the cost of employing such staff was in 2008-09. [290217]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The Department has one full-time equivalent member of staff responsible for branding activity, employed at a cost of £45,256.75 in 2008-09.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department spent on hire vehicles in each of the last five financial years. [291601]
Mr. Coaker: The data requested was for the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF). DCSF was established under the machinery of Government changes on 28 June 2007, therefore the response covers its predecessor the Department for Education and Skills (DFES).
Total spend for hire vehicles during the last five financial years is £618,315.00.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many properties owned by the Department and its predecessors were liable for payment of (a) business rates and (b) empty property rates in each of the last five years; and what the bill for each was in each such year. [290539]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The Department for Children, Schools and Families and its predecessors has spent the following on business rates in each of the last five years. The Department did not own any properties that were subject to empty property rates during this period.
| Business rates | |||||
| £ | |||||
| Property | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007- 08 | 2008-09 |
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department has spent on hospitality in the last 12 months. [286389]
Mr. Coaker [holding answer 13 July 2009]: Details of expenditure on entertainment incurred by the Department are set out as follows:
2008-09: £17,371
This figure shows the cost of personal entertainment incurred directly by Ministers and senior departmental officials in order to further departmental business.
The Department’s policy on entertainment is in accordance with the principles of Treasury guidance in “Managing Public Money” and the handbook on “Regularity, Propriety and Value for Money”.
Entertainment expenditure is limited to occasions when official business can best be transacted in that way. Personal entertainment, in the form of hospitality, is usually restricted to where senior managers (deputy director or above) are acting as host and expenditure must be approved in advance by a director or executive board member.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 12 January 2009, Official Report, column 9W, on departmental official hospitality, how much his Department spent on entertainment and hospitality in 2008-09. [290169]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: Details of expenditure on entertainment incurred by the Department are set out as follows:
2008-09: £17,371
The figure includes expenditure incurred by Ministers and senior departmental officials. The figure excludes costs incurred as part of official events or formal meetings held to further departmental business which are not separately identifiable on the Department’s accounting system.
The Department’s policy on entertainment is in accordance with the principles of Treasury guidance in “Managing Public Money and the handbook on “Regularity, Propriety and Value for Money”.
Entertainment expenditure is limited to occasions when official business can best be transacted in that way. Personal entertainment, in the form of hospitality, is usually restricted to where senior managers (deputy director or above) are acting as host and expenditure must be approved in advance by a director or executive board member.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of staff in his Department have worked part-time in each year since the Department was established. [289797]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: Information for the Department since its creation on 28 June 2007 is as follows:
| Number of part-time staff | Proportion (percentage) | |
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many staff took paternity leave from his Department and its predecessors in each of the last five years; and what the average length of such leave has been. [290537]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The information is set out in the following table:
| Number of staff | |
Employees in the Department are currently allowed 15 days paternity leave, and before 1 April 2007, it was 10 days.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 210W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what employee reward schemes are offered to staff of his Department; what the purpose of each scheme is; how many staff participate in each scheme; and what the cost of operating each scheme was in each of the last five years. [290540]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: Under the Department’s reward and recognition policies(1), employees can receive one or more of the following:
Non-Con solidated Performance Payment
One-off performance payment where an employee below the senior civil service (SCS) is judged to have performed to category level 1 or 2+ or a member of the SCS is judged to have performed to performance groups 1 and 2 levels in the reporting year.
| Staff | |||
| Number | Percentage | Total (SCS and non SCS) (£ million) | |
One-off payment in the form of a voucher based on staff nomination of any DCSF employee, team or directorate whose actions have demonstrated initiative and significant impact in relation to the departmental priority areas of outcome and people management, customer service or collaborative working
| Staff (number) | Total (£) | |
One-off payment for employee ideas judged by the relevant team, based on criteria, to merit a cash reward.
| Staff (number) | Total (£) | |
For completion of 25 years service where employees are eligible for a gift up to the value of £250, or one week’s paid special leave.
| Staff (number) | Total (£) | |
(1) Department for Education and Skills to 27 June 2007 and Department for Children, Schools and Families from 28 June 2007
2 Introduced in July 2007
(3) Based on those employees taking the cash option.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many consultations have been completed by his Department in each year since its establishment. [290199]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The Department was established in June 2007. Completed consultations undertaken since that date are outlined in the following table.
| Consultations completed | |
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what data his Department holds on the level of diversity in the recruitment of employees by his Department and its predecessor in each of the last three years. [290502]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: Information on the level of diversity in the recruitment of employees in the Department is available within the external recruitment tables of the Department's annual reports on the DCSF website
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/aboutus/reports/
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of his Department's waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289665]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The latest Sustainable Development in Government report for 2007/08 noted 58.9 per cent. of the Department's waste was recycled. Results for the 2008/09 report are currently being evaluated.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many sick days were taken by staff of his Department in each of the last five years; and what the cost to the public purse of such absences was in each such year. [290533]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The Department was set up as part of the Machinery of Government (MOG) changes on 28 June 2007, so the figures apply from 1 July 2007. Sickness absence data for the Department since its inception, including the average number of working days lost, are published on the Department's website:
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/sicknessabsence/
Due to the wide range of posts and salary points in the Department, the actual cost of those absences could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many external training courses were attended by staff of his Department in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of each course. [289690]
Ms Diana R. Johnson:
The Department does not collect this information centrally in the form requested. Information on the number of external training courses attended by employees in the last 12 months and the
cost of each course is held locally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
The criteria for funding any external training courses will be driven by Professional Skills for Government.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many students in post-16 education in each local authority area in the East of England were in receipt of education maintenance allowance in each year since the scheme was introduced. [289297]
Mr. Iain Wright: This is a matter for the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) who operate the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) for the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF). Geoffrey Russell the LSC's Acting Chief Executive, will write to the hon. Member for North West Cambridgeshire with the information requested and a copy of his reply will be placed in the House Libraries.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many students in post-16 education in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency and (b) Dacorum are in receipt of education maintenance allowance. [289422]
Dawn Primarolo: This is a matter for the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) who operate the education maintenance allowance (EMA) for the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF). Geoffrey Russell the LSC’s Acting Chief Executive, will write to the hon. Member with the information requested and a copy of his reply will be placed in the House Libraries.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many secondary schools in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum, (c) Hertfordshire and (d) England have had revenue balances in excess of those predicted in each year since 1997; [289462]
(2) how many primary schools in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum, (c) Hertfordshire and (d) England have had revenue balances in excess of those predicted in each year since 1997. [289463]
Mr. Coaker: The Department collects figures of the balances held by schools and the amount of revenues raised by schools via the Section 52 Outturn statements. We have collected information on balances since 1999-2000. There are no figures available for previous years. The Section 52 Outturn statements are completed by all local authorities in England and we request only the final figures for the schools in their area. We do not collect predicted figures.
The following table shows the number of schools in Hertfordshire and England that held surplus balances from 1999-2000 to 2007-08. The Department does not hold figures by constituency.
| Maintained primary and secondary schools in surplus( 1) in England and York and Hertfordshire local authorities,1999-2000 to 2007-08( 2) | |||
| Number | |||
| LA name | Primary schools in surplus | Secondary schools in surplus | |
| (1) A school's total revenue balance is calculated from the combination of any unspent allocations (including unspent Standards Fund grants) and the cumulative balance of income less expenditure from revenue funding sources during the financial year and any balances carried forward from previous years. This is drawn by adding together the unspent allocations and balance carried forward columns from local authorities Section 52 Outturn Statements 1999-2000 to 2001-02 (Table 2), Consistent Financial Reporting categories B01 and B02 from local authorities Section 52 Outturn Statements (Table B) 2002-03 to 2005-06 and Consistent Financial Reporting categories B01, B02 and B06 from local authorities Section 52 Outturn Statements (Table B) 2006-07 onwards. (2) School level revenue balances are not available prior to the inception of Section 52 for the 1999-2000 financial year. | |||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 214W—continued
In February 2009, we published the figures for balances and deficits held by schools for the financial year 2007-08. Last month, the Department began receiving submissions from local authorities providing information for 2008-09. The Department is now in the process of confirming and clarifying this information and we expect to publish the figures for balances and deficits held by schools for the financial year 2008-09 in 2010.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much capital expenditure from the public purse there has been in the education sector in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency and (b) Dacorum since 1997. [289423]
Mr. Coaker: The Department allocates much of its capital resources to local authority areas. Information by constituency or for Dacorum only is not held centrally. Support for capital investment in schools in Hertfordshire is shown in the table.
| Financial year | Schools (£ million) |
| (1) Includes Primary Capital Programme. Figures reflect capital allocations brought forward from 2010-11 to 2009-10 as part of the fiscal stimulus initiative. | |
In addition, Hertfordshire has a Building Schools for the Future wave 4 project with an indicative allocation of £134.5 million of conventional funding and £148.2 million of PFI credits.
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what funding his Department has allocated for the provision of online learning grids; and through which bodies such funding is paid. [289599]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The DCSF does not provide any dedicated funding to schools or local authorities that must be spent on the provision of online learning grids.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what guidance his Department and its agencies have provided for local authorities on the priority admission of children of Travellers to state schools. [290285]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The School Admissions Code, which came into force on 10 February 2009, provides statutory guidance on the application and allocation of school places for all admission authorities in England.
Local authorities are required to maintain Fair Access Protocols to ensure that access to education is secured quickly for children who have no school place but for whom a place at a mainstream school or alternative provision is appropriate. Children of Travellers, who may have difficulty securing a school place, are covered in the Fair Access Protocols.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what guidance his Department provides on overseas exchange visits for children of school age, with particular reference to whether Criminal Records Bureau checks should be undertaken for (a) British families having contact with children and (b) overseas families who have contact with visiting British children. [292146]
Dawn Primarolo: Chapter 4 of the “Safeguarding Children and Safer Recruitment in Education” guidance, which came into force on 1 January 2007, sets out the Department's strong recommendation that volunteers who help regularly with activities associated with the school or further education college and are in unsupervised contact with children, including new host families who provide care for students from overseas, should be CRB checked.
Under the new vetting and barring scheme those who provide care and accommodation for children under 18 for reward or by arrangement made outside the family will be engaged in 'regulated activity', and this is made clear in interim guidance the Government are issuing today about the new scheme. This means that in a two parent family, both parents will have to register with the scheme. Further guidance about registration with the ISA, which begins in summer 2010, will be produced in due course. We cannot impose this requirement on host families in other countries who provide care for British children.
However schools should satisfy themselves that adequate safeguarding arrangements have been put in place to protect children.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many times his Department and its predecessors have been taken to an employment tribunal in each of the last five years; what the reason cited in each case was; and in how many cases the tribunal found in favour of the (a) employee and (b) Department. [290535]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The Department has defended one case in each of the financial years 2007-08 and 2008-09 in employment tribunal hearings. The tribunal found in favour of the Department and predecessor, the Department for Education and Skills, in both cases. Information for 2005-06 and 2006-07 financial years could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Further details on the above cases are suppressed on grounds of confidentiality.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of children obtained GCSEs at grade C or above in (a) English, (b) mathematics, (c) a modern language, (d) history, (e) physics, (f) chemistry and (g) biology in each year between 1997 and 2008; and if he will make a statement. [285459]
Mr. Coaker: The proportion of children who achieved a grade C or above in each of the specified subjects at key stage 4, from 1997 to 2008, are shown in the following table. The figures provided show the proportion of all pupils who achieved a grade C or above, regardless of how many pupils were entered for the GCSE in question.
The number of pupils sitting a modern language GCSE has fallen since languages ceased to be compulsory at KS4 in 2004. However, for those sitting a GCSE, the proportion achieving a grade C or above has risen from 48 per cent. in 1997 to 69 per cent. in 2008.
| Percentage | ||||||||||||
| Subject | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
| n/a = Not applicable. Notes: 1. Figures in recent years are for all pupils at the end of key stage 4, figures prior to 2005 are for all 15-year-old pupils. 2. 2005 figures are available for 15-year-olds as well as for pupils at the end of key stage 4. A comparison of the two has shown the change in coverage does not affect the result by more than one percentage point in any of the given subjects. | ||||||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 218W—continued
Detailed figures for 2008 can be found in the following Statistical First Release: GCSE and Equivalent Results in England, 2007/08 (Revised) at:
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000826/SFR02_2009_AdditionalTables_Amended030309-2.xls (table 11)
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) what percentage of children living in a two-parent household gained 5 GCSEs at grade A* to C in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement; [290044]
(2) what percentage of children living in a single-parent household with their (a) mother and (b) father gained 5 GCSEs at grade A* to C in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement; [290045]
(3) what percentage of children living in a two-parent household went on to study (a) for A-levels and (b) for a university course in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement; [290046]
(4) what percentage of children living in a single-parent household with their (a) mother and (b) father went on to study (i) for A-levels and (ii) for a university course in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement. [290047]
Mr. Coaker: The Department does not hold administrative data on the attainment and progression in learning of young people by household characteristics for each year since 1997, but it does hold survey-based estimates of GCSE results and progression to A-level for the years 1999, 2001, 2003 and 2006, and for progression to Higher Education in the years 2001, 2003 and 2005.
Table 1 is derived from the Youth Cohort Study (data from 1999 to 2006) and the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England (2006 only). It shows the proportion of young people in England from two-parent, lone father, and lone mother households who achieved 5 GCSEs at A*-C in the years 1999, 2001, 2003 and 2006.
| Table 1 | ||||||||
| Percentage gaining 5 GCSEs (inc equivalents) at A*—C by Year 11 in given year | ||||||||
| 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | |
| Notes: 1. Data relate to England and Wales, however, 2006 relates to England only. 2. Cases which are missing, not applicable, refused, not stated, or not known are excluded. Source: YCS Cohorts 10, 11, 12, 13; LSYPE Wave 4. | ||||||||
Tables 2a and 2b overleaf are derived from the Youth Cohort Study and the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England. They show:
(a) The proportion of young people from two-parent lone-father and lone-mother families who went of to study A-levels (AS or A2) at the age (academic) of 16.
(b) The proportion of young people from two-parent, lone-father and lone-mother families who began a full-time Higher Education course at the age (academic) of 18.
| Table 2a | ||||||||
| Percentage studying for A-levels(AS or A2) at academic age 16 | ||||||||
| 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | |
| Notes: 1. Data relate to England and Wales, however data for 2006 relates to England only. 2. Cases which are missing, not applicable, refused, not stated, or not known are excluded. Source: YCS Cohorts 10, 11, 12, 13; LSYPE Wave 4 | ||||||||
| Table 2b | |||||
| Percentage studying full-time HE at academic age 18 | |||||
| 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | |
| Notes: 1. Data relate to England and Wales 2. Cases which are missing, not applicable, refused, not stated, or not known are excluded. Sou rce: YCS Cohorts 10, 11, 12 | |||||
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families when the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire, dated 9 June 2009, on adoption. [289866]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The Baroness Morgan of Drefelin replied to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire on 13 August, 2009.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will place in the Library a copy of the (a) display energy certificate and (b) advisory report for public buildings issued in respect of each property occupied by the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills. [289845]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) publish central Government Departments' Display Energy Certificate (DEC) operational ratings (building by building level) on their website accessible via the following link:
http://www.ogc.gov.uk/government_delivery_display_ energy_certificate_data.asp
DEC reference numbers for each building can be used to view each advisory report accessible via the following link:
http://www.ndepcregister.com/home.html
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many Steiner nurseries have applied for exemption from the Early Years Foundation Stage since September 2008. [289316]
Dawn Primarolo: As of 21 August 2009, 18 Steiner Waldorf settings have applied for exemptions from and/or modifications of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Two Steiner Waldorf settings have completed the exemptions process. Both applicants have been granted modifications and/or exemptions from the EYFS Learning and Development requirements.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of (a) private, voluntary and independent nurseries and (b) Sure Start children's centres had at least one member of staff with Early Years professional status in each year for which figures are available. [289317]
Dawn Primarolo: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many and what proportion of children achieved the national standard in each of the Foundation Stage Profile assessments in each year for which information is available; [289324]
(2) how many and what proportion of children in (a) each region and (b) England have been working securely within each of the 13 assessment scales of the Foundation Stage Assessment Profiles in England in each year since 2005. [290200]
Mr. Coaker: The information available for 2006 to 2008 is shown in table 3a of Statistical First Release 25/2008, available at
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000812/index.shtml
The information available for 2005 is shown in table 3a of Statistical First Release 32/2007, available at
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000752/index.shtml
The information available for 2007 and 2008 can be found in tables B and C of the additional Local Authority and Government Office Region tables of Statistical First Release 32/2007, available at
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000752/index.shtml
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000812/index.shtml
The information available for 2005 and 2006 can be found in table B of the additional local authority tables of SFR 03/2006, available at
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000634/index.shtml
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000704/index.shtml
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of children in the 30 per cent most deprived areas have been working securely within each of the 13 assessment scales of the Foundation Stage Assessment Profiles in England in each year since 2005. [290201]
Mr. Coaker: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 28 January 2009, Official Report, column 656W.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what funds his Department has made available to increase the early years entitlement to 25 hours per week from September 2009. [289313]
Dawn Primarolo: From September 2009, all local authorities will roll out an extended 15-hour, flexible, free, early education entitlement to their most disadvantaged children. A year later the rollout will be completed, with every three and four-year-old eligible to receive 15 hours early education free per week, to be delivered more flexibly in response to parental demand.
£590 million has been made available over 2008-11 to fund the additional 2.5 hours per week of provision and more flexible delivery. This funding is over and above that which local authorities currently receive through the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) for a 12 and a half hour free entitlement.
Over the same period, £642 million capital funding has been made available to improve the quality and capacity of child care in the private, voluntary and independent (PVI) sector, to help deliver the extension of the 15 hours free entitlement for three and four-year-olds and equip settings with facilities for children with disabilities so there are no barriers for any child accessing child care.
The Government have also committed, from 2011, to funding the cost of all children starting school in the September after their fourth birthday, and the full-time costs (up to 25 hours per week) of those children whose parents would prefer them to be in private or voluntary early years provision.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of (a) childminders and (b) private, voluntary and independent nurseries have received funding from the Early Years Capital Grant. [289315]
Dawn Primarolo: Information is not collected on the number and proportion of early years and child care providers who have received funding from the Early Years Capital Grant.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of private, voluntary and independent nurseries have received funding from local authorities to deliver the free early years entitlement in each local authority in each year since 2004. [289799]
Dawn Primarolo:
The Early Years Census collects information from local authorities on Private, Voluntary and Independent (PVI) providers delivering the free entitlement. All PVI providers returned in the Early Years Census will receive Dedicated Schools Grant funding from their local authority. Table 1 shows the number of PVI providers recorded on the Early Years
Census as delivering the free entitlement from 2004-2009 in each local authority area.
The number of PVI providers not delivering the free entitlement is not known.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 222W—continued
| Table 1: Number of private, voluntary and independent providers that received funding to deliver the free entitlement, position in January each year | ||||||
| Local authority area | 2004( 1) | 2005( 1) | 2006( 1) | 2007( 1) | 2008( 2) | 2009( 2) |
| (1) Data based on aggregate local authority funding return. (2) Data based on child-level Early Years Census return. Source: Early Years Census | ||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 224W—continued
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of (a) Sure Start, (b) Early Years and (c) Childcare Grant allocations has been retained by each local authority in each of the last three years for which figures are available; and what the total (i) revenue and (ii) capital allocation was in each case. [290451]
Dawn Primarolo: Local authorities do not retain unspent allocation of the Sure Start, Early Years and Childcare Grant (SSEYCG). The Department claws back any unspent allocation of revenue following receipt of audited statements of expenditure. The Department also does this for capital allocations but offers carry-forward of unspent capital each year until the end of March 2011 (2010-11 financial year).
The information requested has been placed in the House Libraries. The SSEYCG allocations for each local authority for the last three years are given in Table 1. The spend by local authorities for the last three years for which figures are available are given in Table 2.
The SSEYCG is not divided into the three categories of (a) Sure Start, (b) Early Years and (c) Childcare Grant and local authorities do not report on that basis. The SSEYCG is made up of broad ring-fenced blocks.
In 2009-10 there were nine blocks: Main Revenue, Sure Start Local Programmes, Disabled Children’s Access to Childcare, Two-year-olds Offer, 0 to seven Partnerships Pilots, Work Focused Services, Aiming High for Disabled Children Revenue, Main Capital and Aiming High for Disabled Children Capital. The grant structure is detailed in the Memorandum of Grant which was sent to local authorities’ chief executives and directors of children’s services on 19 February 2009.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much is planned to be spent under the Primary Capital Programme in each local authority in 2009-10. [292166]
Mr. Coaker: The amount planned to be spent under the Primary Capital Programme in each local authority in 2009-10 is set out in the following table. This includes the main allocation as well as advances from 2010-11 that some authorities applied for. A few allocations may be subject to re-phasing into next year, dependent upon local spend patterns of spending.
| £000 | ||
| Local Authority | Main | Advance |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 228W—continued
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many schools in (a) the Value of York and (b) North Yorkshire have participated in the Primary Capital Programme in 2009. [291694]
Mr. Coaker: Funding for the national roll out of the Primary Capital Programme commenced in April 2009. It follows that very few of the projects to be funded wholly or partly through the programme have actually commenced on site at this stage. I am pleased to confirm, however, that North Yorkshire's county council's Primary Strategy for Change has been approved and funding of £11.97 million to support local delivery over the two year period 2009-11 has been duly confirmed. Decisions about the prioritisation of individual projects are rightly matters for local determination. My officials have been advised following inquiries made to officers at North Yorkshire that building work is expected to commence shortly at the following schools:
Norton Community Primary School
Hinderwell Community Primary School
Barrowcliffe Community Primary School
Friarage Community Primary School
Although none of these schools are located in the Vale of York constituency, the programme aims to support local authorities in renewing around half of all primary schools by 2023. More detailed information about the work planned can be obtained from the local authority.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether the £200 million allocated to provide additional primary school places in areas with shortages announced on 15 July 2009 will affect funding for new primary provision in areas which have surplus places. [288867]
Mr. Coaker: On 15 July, we announced that we would make up to £200 million available for authorities which are experiencing and forecasting exceptionally high rates of growth in demand for reception places to 2011, to support the provision of permanent places where there is greatest need. Our guidance on this funding includes that authorities which do not have high growth in reception class demand overall, may still apply where they have areas within their borders where there is high growth. We would, however, expect authorities which have high levels of surplus places to justify why these cannot be used to accommodate the additional children.
Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) what plans he has to extend his Department's free school meals pilot to all primary school-age children; [292378]
(2) which local authorities applied to participate in his Department's pilot scheme for free school meals. [292379]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: We have no plans to extend the free school meals pilots to all primary school-age children. Pilots in Newham and Durham started this term to test the case for extending free school meals for all primary children and we will want to learn the lessons of those pilots before making decisions on any national extension.
We invited all local authorities and primary care trusts who felt they met the criteria specified to be a pilot area to express an interest in taking part in the pilots. Expressions were received from the following authorities: Barking and Dagenham; Barnsley; Blackburn and Darwen; Bolton; Brighton and Hove; Bristol; Cornwall; Croydon; Dudley; Durham; Gateshead; Halton; Haringey; Hillingdon; Isle of Wight; Kent; Knowsley; Liverpool; Luton; Newham; North Tyneside; Oldham; Reading; Rotherham; Sandwell; Sheffield; Sunderland; Telford and Wrekin; Waltham Forest; Wakefield; West Sussex; Wigan; and Wolverhampton.
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) what percentage of children living in a two-parent household were permanently excluded from school in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement; [290048]
(2) what percentage of children living in a single-parent household with their (a) mother and (b) father were permanently excluded from school in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement. [290049]
Mr. Coaker: The Department does not collect data on household background of excluded pupils. The latest available information on exclusions was recently published at:
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000860/index.shtml
However, we recognise the importance of parental engagement in their children’s learning and that there is a range of evidence that parental relationship breakdown, leading to conflict, has a negative impact on child outcomes. Our aim is to improve outcomes for children by preventing family breakdown where possible and by minimising the negative effects of parental separation on children’s well-being.
The Children’s Plan: Progress Report, published in December 2008, further outlined Ministers’ strategy for improving parents’ engagement in children’s learning and development through providing direct support for parents and mainstreaming parental engagement in all our policy interventions including children’s centres, 21st century schools, National and City Challenges, the workforce strategy, and parenting support programmes.
Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps he plans to take to (a) monitor and (b) evaluate the implementation of the revised Managing Medicines in Schools guidance. [289696]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: This Department is committed to revising its Managing Medicines in Schools guidance as announced in the Child Health Strategy. It will be for schools to develop their own implementation plans working with local delivery partners to establish how best to support the needs of pupils with a long-term medical condition and it will be for schools to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of their implementation.
Mr. Pelling: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will collect information on (a) levels of epilepsy in schools and (b) educational attainment of pupils with epilepsy. [291019]
Ms Diana R. Johnson [holding answer 14 September 2009]: The School Census collects data on the numbers of children with special educational needs (SEN) and we publish data on their educational attainment. For those children at School Action Plus or with a statement, data are collected on their primary need in 12 categories. The latest figures can be found in Special Educational Needs in England: January 2009 (SFR14/2009)
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000852/index.shtml.
There is not a specific category for children with epilepsy, although where they have a special educational need, they will be captured in the overall SEN figures.
In the joint Department for Children, Schools and Families and Department of Health publication “Healthy Lives: Brighter Futures, The strategy for children and young people’s health” (February 2009),
http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_094400
we provided an estimate of the number of children with epilepsy in an average Primary Care Trust area
“In an average-sized health community, with a population of around 80,000 children and young people up to the age of 18...over 300 will have epilepsy.”
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of pupils in (a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools had English as an additional language in (i) Basingstoke, (ii) Hampshire and (iii) England in each of the last 10 years. [289803]
Mr. Coaker: The information requested is shown in the table.
| Primary and secondary schools( 1) : Number and percentage of pupils whose first language is known or believed to be other than English | ||||
| Pupils of compulsory school age and above | ||||
| Primary schools( 2) | Secondary schools( 2,3) | |||
| Number of pupils | Percentage of pupils( 4) | Number of pupils | Percentage of pupils( 4) | |
| (1) Pupils of compulsory school age and above were classified by first language. Excludes dual registrations. (2) Includes middle schools as deemed. (3) Includes CTCs and Academies. (4) The number of pupils whose first language is known or believed to be other than English expressed as a percentage of the number of pupils of compulsory school age and above. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10. Source: School Census. | ||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 231W—continued
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the funding allocation per (a) secondary and (b) primary school pupil was in each local authority area in the East of England in each of the last five years. [289396]
Mr. Coaker: The per pupil revenue funding figures for primary and secondary schools pupils for East of England local authorities in 2004-05 and 2005-06 are as follows. These figures are in real terms:
| Real terms revenue funding—EFS plus grants | ||||
| £ | ||||
| Primary pupils (3-10 years) | Secondary pupils (11-15 years) | |||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| Notes: 1. Price Base: Real terms at 2008-09 prices, based on GDP deflators as at 30 June 2009. 2. Figures reflect relevant sub-blocks of Education Formula Spending (EFS) settlements and include the pensions transfer to EFS. 3. Total funding also includes all revenue grants in DfES Departmental Expenditure Limits relevant to pupils aged 3-15 and exclude education maintenance allowances (EMAs) and grants not allocated at LEA level. 4. The pupil numbers used to convert £ million figures to £ per pupil are those underlying the EFS settlement calculations. 5. Rounding: Figures are rounded to the nearest £10. 6. Status: Some of the grant allocations have not been finalised. If these do change, the effect on the funding figures is expected to be minimal. | ||||
The revenue per pupil figures shown in the following table are taken from the new Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG). They are not comparable with those for the years 2004-05 to 2005-06 because the introduction of the DSG in 2006-07 fundamentally changed how local authorities are funded.
The 2004-05 to 2005-06 figures are based on Education Formula Spending (EFS) which formed the education part of the Local Government Finance Settlement, plus various grants. This was an assessment of what local authorities needed to fund education rather than what they spent. The DSG is based largely on an authority's previous spending. In addition, the DSG has a different coverage to EFS. EFS comprised a schools block and an LEA block (to cover LEA central functions) whereas DSG only covers the school block. LEA block items are still funded through DCLG's Local Government Finance Settlement but education items cannot be separately identified. Consequently, there is a break in the Department's time series as the two sets of data are not comparable. An alternative time series is currently under development.
To provide a comparison for 2006-07 DSG, the Department have isolated the schools block equivalent funding in 2005-06; as described above, this does not represent the totality of “education” funding in that year.
The per pupil revenue funding figures for years 2005-06 (baseline) to 2008-09 for East of England local authorities are provided in the following table.
The figures for 2009-10 are not currently available as figures for grants at a local authority level are still in the process of being finalised. The figures for 2009-10 will be available later in the financial year.
As the DSG is a mechanism for distributing funding, a split between primary and secondary schools is not available. The figures below are for all funded pupils aged 3-19 and are in real terms:
| Real terms revenue funding—DSG plus grants | ||||
| £ | ||||
| All pupils (3-19 years) | ||||
| 2005-06( 1) | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
| (1) Baseline. Notes: 1. This covers funding through the Dedicated Schools Grant, School Standards Grant, School Standards Grant (Personalisation) and Standards Fund as well as funding from the Learning and Skills Council; it excludes grants which are not allocated at LA level. 2. Price Base: Real terms at 2008-09 prices, based on GDP deflators as at 30 June 2009. 3. These figures are for all funded pupils aged 3-19. 4. Figures have been rounded to the nearest £10. 5. Some of the grant allocations have not been finalised. If these do change, the effect on the funding figures is expected to be minimal. | ||||
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average expenditure per pupil was in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in Dacorum (i) in 1997 and (ii) the last 12 month period for which figures are available. [289442]
Mr. Coaker: Figures are not available for Dacorum borough council as data is collected at top tier local authority level. The available information on the average expenditure per pupil in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in Hertfordshire local authority is shown in the following table:
| 1997-98 | 2007-08 | |||
| Pre-primary and primary education | Secondary education | Primary education | Secondary education | |
| Notes: 1. School based expenditure includes only expenditure incurred directly by the schools. This includes the pay of teachers and school-based support staff, school premises costs, books and equipment, and certain other supplies and services, less any capital items funded from recurrent spending and income from sales, fees and charges and rents and rates. This excludes the central cost of support services such as home to school transport, local authority administration and the financing of capital expenditure. 2. 1999-2000 saw a change in data source when the data collection moved from the ROI form collected by the CLG to the Section 52 form from the DCSF. 2002-03 saw a further break in the time series following the introduction of Consistent Financial Reporting (CFR) and the associated restructuring of the outturn tables. From 2002-03 school based expenditure is taken from Section 52 Outturn Table A line 51 net current expenditure (NCE). For 2001-02 and earlier years the expenditure is calculated as lines 1 to 12 less lines 29, 30, 35 and 37. This differs from the old Net Institutional Expenditure (NIE) calculation only in the treatment of meals and milk which is no longer excluded and no adjustments for balances are now made. This is taken from Section 52 Outturn Table 3 for 1999-2000 to 2001-02 and from the R01 form previously. 3. The calculation for 2002-03 onwards is broadly similar to the calculation in previous years. 4. Pupil numbers include only those pupils attending maintained establishments within each sector and are drawn from the DCSF Annual Schools Census adjusted to be on a financial year basis. 5. Spending in 1997-98 reflects the transfer of monies from local government to central government for the nursery vouchers scheme. These were returned to local government from 1998-99. 6. Expenditure was not distinguished between the pre-primary and primary sectors until the inception of Section 52 for financial year 1999-2000. 7. Figures are rounded to the nearest £10 and cash terms figures. | ||||
Mr. Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what guidance his Department has issued to parents on the terms under which crèches can voluntarily register with Ofsted under the provisions of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. [286935]
Dawn Primarolo: The voluntary part of the General Childcare Register was introduced in April 2007, under the provisions of the Childcare Act 2006. The Department for Children, Schools and Families has distributed 5,400 copies of a leaflet about the voluntary register to parents and childcare providers through the Family Information Services of all local authorities. Parents can also find information on the voluntary part of the General Childcare Register on the Ofsted website at:
http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Forms-and-guidance/Browse-all-by/Care-and-local-services/Childcare
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) if he will commission a national audit to determine the (a) extent, (b) type and (c) condition of asbestos in school buildings; [289818]
(2) if he will commission a national audit to determine the standards of asbestos management in respect of school buildings. [289819]
Mr. Coaker: In January 2009 DCSF sent out a questionnaire about the management of asbestos in system-built schools to local authorities to confirm that the school duty holders were managing asbestos correctly. DCSF and HSE are evaluating the responses to identify local authorities that are managing the risks, so that HSE inspections can be targeted at those that are not.
We do not intend to extend this to a national audit to determine the extent, type and condition of asbestos in school buildings. The Control of Asbestos Regulation 2006 places duties on those responsible for the maintenance and repair of non-domestic buildings, including schools, to take reasonable steps to identify the location and condition of asbestos containing materials. The duty holder must then use this information to make a written record and management plan to ensure that the risks of exposure to asbestos are properly managed. A national audit would duplicate these arrangements, and have little or no effect in reducing the health risks associated with asbestos.
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what capital funding has been allocated to schools in Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency for each of the last three years. [291443]
Mr. Coaker: The Department does not maintain central records on school capital allocations on a constituency basis, as they are made on a local authority basis. School capital allocations to Birmingham for each of the last three years are shown in the following table:
| £ million | |
The 2009-10 allocations include £127 million in respect of the Building Schools for the Future programme, and an advance of £12.6 million brought forward from 2010-11 in support of the Government's fiscal stimulus initiative.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which schools for children aged three to 18 years have different primary and secondary sites. [292165]
Source:
EduBase
12 Oct 2009 : Column 235W—continued
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many staff sickness days were taken in schools as a result of an assault upon a staff member in each local education authority area in the most recent year for which figures are available; how many days were lost per staff member on average as a result of such assaults in that year; and what the estimated cost of such losses was to each local education authority in that period. [289288]
Mr. Coaker: The requested information is not held centrally by the Department.
Any violence against school staff is totally unacceptable. Our recently published behaviour strategy has at its centre strong discipline and good behaviour. It sets out how we will implement the parent and pupil guarantees announced in the “schools White Paper” that in their school there will be good behaviour, strong discipline, order and safety.
In addition, we intend to introduce new requirements on schools to record incidents of bullying between pupils, and incidents of verbal and physical abuse against school staff. We will introduce the new legislation in 2010. This new requirement will encourage more widespread and effective reporting, appropriate responses and prevention work. It will also send out a clear message to school staff that the issue will be taken seriously and acted upon.
Mr. David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what energy-efficiency standards his Department stipulated for circulator pumps installed in (a) existing and ( b) new schools. [291787]
Mr. Coaker:
The Building Regulations Part L2A and L2B set energy performance standards for new and refurbished buildings and the energy efficiency of pumps is regulated in this way. The Department does not directly stipulate energy efficiency standards for circulator
pumps either for existing or new buildings. Within our main programme for new schools, the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme, our approach is to set targets for carbon emissions by a combination of energy efficiency and renewable energy systems.
In addition to these regulatory actions, we have developed guidance to help the designers of all newly built schools achieve their target level of carbon reduction. This guidance encourages the use of energy efficient equipment without being prescriptive about design solutions. Additional funding has been provided to three groups of new secondary schools to enable them to reduce their carbon emissions by 60 per cent: schools within BSF, academies and school projects procured directly by local authorities ahead of their scheduled BSF rebuild (One School Pathfinder schools).
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many full-time equivalent (a) teachers, (b) teaching assistants and (c) support staff there were in local education authority schools in Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency on the latest date for which figures are available. [291441]
Mr. Coaker: The following table provides the full-time equivalent number of teachers, teaching assistants and support staff in service in local authority maintained schools in Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency in January 2009, the latest information available.
| Full-time equivalent teachers, teaching assistants and support staff in local authority maintained schools( 1) , January 2009, Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency | |
| Number | |
| (1) Excludes academies and city technology colleges.( )(2) Includes qualified and unqualified teachers. (3 )Includes teaching assistants. Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Source: School Census | |
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many applications under section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 to dispose of school playing fields have been made by Nottinghamshire County Council in the last three months. [292164]
Mr. Coaker: We have not received any applications to dispose of school playing fields from Nottinghamshire county council in the last three months.
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families when he expects to announce his decision on whether schools will remain closed in September as a result of swine influenza; and if he will make a statement. [289817]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: The Secretary of State sent an email message to all schools on 26 August. That message stated:
“We have been closely monitoring the spread and severity of swine flu over the school holidays. The latest scientific advice to the Government is that individual school closures are now of limited benefit in stopping the spread of disease.
Given the mildness of the virus, the expert medical advice is that there is no good reason for schools to remain closed after the summer holiday. We therefore expect all schools and early-years and childcare settings in England to reopen as planned at the beginning of the new term.”
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many single sex state (a) primary and (b) secondary schools there have been in each year since 1997. [291854]
Mr. Coaker: The requested information is shown in the table.
| Maintained primary( 1) and state-funded secondary( 1,2) : Single sex schools, as at January each year, England | ||
| Primary schools | Secondary schools | |
| (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Includes city technology colleges and academies. (3) In 2000 the intake of four primary schools was not recorded. (4) In 2004 the intake of one primary school was not recorded. Source: School Census and Edubase | ||
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of the Sure Start budget was spent on updating the Sure Start website in 2008-09. [290364]
Mr. Iain Wright: The Department spent £57,054 of the total £1,311,233,386 Sure Start budget on updating the Sure Start website during the 2008-09 financial year. This constitutes 0.004 per cent. of the Sure Start budget.
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many entrants to teacher training courses had to resit the (a) literacy and (b) numeracy tests (i) once, (ii) twice and (iii) three or more times in the last year for which figures are available. [288243]
Mr. Coaker: The information is as follows:
In 2007/08, 3,760 entrants to teacher training courses had to resit the literacy test once. The number of entrants who resat the test two or more times was 2,490. A further breakdown to show those who resat the literacy test twice or three or more times could be provided only at disproportionate costs.
In 2007-08, 3,260 entrants to teacher training courses had to resit the numeracy test once. The number of entrant who resat the test two or more times was 3,480. A further breakdown to show those who resat the numeracy test twice or three or more times could be provided only at disproportionate costs.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of people aged 16 and 17 years were not in education, employment or training in each local authority area in each year since 2000. [285862]
Mr. Coaker [holding answer 13 July 2009]: The Department’s estimate of the number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEET) cannot be disaggregated to local level. However, we can estimate the number of young people NEET using figures drawn from the client management systems maintained by Connexions services. The following table shows the number and proportion of young people aged 16 and 17 who were not in education, employment or training (NEET) in each local authority area at the end of 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 based on Connexions data. The first year for which local authority figures are available is 2005.
The figures relate to 16 and 17-year-olds known to Connexions in the December of each year. They are not directly comparable with the national estimates of 16 and 17-year-olds NEET published annually by the Department for Children, Schools and Families.
| Number and proportion of 16 and 17-year-olds not in education, employment or training | ||||||||
| December each year | ||||||||
| 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | |||||
| Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | |
| (1) Figures for City of London are included with those for Tower Hamlets in 2005 and 2006. Source: Connexions service database | ||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 244W—continued
Mr. Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 14 September 2009, Official Report, column 2131W, on air passenger duty, what assessment his Department has made of the effect that the proposed increase in air passenger duty will have on (a) passenger numbers at airports in the South East of England, (b) passenger numbers at regional airports and (c) passenger numbers on other routes. [292300]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Department for Transport published overall passenger demand forecasts for regional airports on page 130 of its Air Passenger Demand forecasts report:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/aviation/atf/co2forecasts09/co2forecasts09.pdf
Sammy Wilson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent estimate his Department has made of the effect of an increase in air passenger duty on levels of employment. [292495]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Government's impact assessment is set out on Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs website and can be accessed via:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/ria/apd-reform-ia.pdf
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 13 May 2009, Official Report, column 847W, on banks: finance, how much of the first loss in respect of the Royal Bank of Scotland Group and Lloyds Banking Group has been written down; and when he expects the Asset Protection scheme to be fully operational. [289917]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The announcements made in February and March set out an in principle agreement with the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and the Lloyds Banking Group (Lloyds) with regard to their participation in the Asset Protection Scheme (APS). Details about the financial performance of RBS and Lloyds, since they agreed in principle to participate in APS, are set out in their interim management statements of 5 August and 7 August respectively.
The final agreements remain under negotiation. Further announcements will be made in due course.
Mr. Hoban:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 11 May 2009, Official Report, column 535W, on banks: finance, which banks
are participating in the Asset-backed Securities Scheme; and what the total monetary value is of the additional loans made available to each such bank. [289918]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The ABS guarantee scheme was made available at Budget 2009, extending funding options open to banks and building societies alongside other Government support schemes, including the existing Credit Guarantee Scheme. Demand for the guarantees will depend on eligible institutions' access to alternative sources of funding and demand for mortgage credit in the economy.
A list of eligible instruments guaranteed under the scheme will be made available by the DMO at:
http://www.dmo.gov.uk
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what position the Government holds in relation to other shareholders in the ranking for settlement in respect of (a) Bradford and Bingley and (b) Northern Rock. [289460]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Mansfield (Mr. Meale) on 17 June 2009, Official Report, column 323W.
Mr. Dunne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what recent discussions he has had with the Payments Council on electronic payments by mobile telephone payments as an alternative form of payment to cheques; [291467]
(2) what discussions he has had with clearing banks on proposals to cease the use of cheques as methods of payment; and what assessment he has made of the risks to security of financial transfers of methods of payment other than cheques. [291745]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Treasury Ministers and officials have discussions with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors to discuss as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such discussions.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 2 April 2009, Official Report, column 1385, on child care tax credit, what estimate he has made of the cost of distributing the child care element of the working tax credit had all those eligible to claim done so in 2008-09. [289300]
Mr. Timms: The information is not available.
HMRC does not have data on the total number of families eligible for the child care element.
Geraldine Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to improve take-up of child tax credit. [288442]
Mr. Timms: The Government's aim is to ensure that everyone receives all of the help that they are entitled to.
Tax credits are benefiting around 6 million families and 10 million children. Take-up is now higher than for any previous system of income-related financial support, at 81 per cent. for the child tax credit, rising to 92 per cent. for the poorest fifth of families. HM Revenue and Customs is pursuing a comprehensive strategy to sustain and increase these high levels of take-up, using methods such as:
placing tax credit advisers in 100 children centres;
joining up marketing of parents' entitlements through the Payments for Parents campaign; and
offering information for new mothers in Bounty packs.
Mike Penning: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many children in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency and (b) Dacorum had received child trust fund payments on the latest date for which figures are available. [289420]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to him on 20 July 2009, Official Report , column 893W.
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many Civil Service jobs have been relocated to the North West of England in the last four years. [291472]
Mr. Byrne: Under the Government's Relocation programme 3,951 posts had been relocated out of London and the south-east to the north-west of England by December 2008.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what research projects the International Development and Climate Change Team of his Department's International Finance Directorate (a) has undertaken and (b) plans to undertake on matters related to energy and climate change. [289823]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Research on matters pertaining to energy and climate change is led by the Department for Energy and Climate Change. Officials in the International Development and Climate Change team work in cooperation with their counterparts at DECC.
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will reply to the email from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire, dated 9 June 2009 on banks. [289864]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: A reply has been sent to the hon. Member.
Mr. Winnick: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to reply to the letter of 7 September 2009 from the hon. Member for Walsall North concerning a constituent; and for what reason no acknowledgement was sent at that time. [292307]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: An acknowledgement was sent to my hon. Friend on 10 September and a reply to the correspondence on 4 October.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department spent on newspaper advertising carried in each newspaper in the most recent year for which figures are available. [289514]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: A breakdown of expenditure on newspaper advertising could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Greg Clark: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a copy of the (a) display energy certificate and (b) advisory report for public buildings issued in respect of each property occupied by (i) the Commissioners for the Reduction of the National Debt, (ii) the Government Actuary's Department, (iii) HM Revenue and Customs and (iv) the Public Works Loan Board. [289844]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: A copy of the Display Energy Certificates (DEC) and associated advisory reports in respect of each property occupied that requires a DEC for (i) the Commissioners for the Reduction of the National Debt (CRND), (ii) the Government Actuary's Department and (iv) the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) will be placed in the Library. CRND and PLWB are both part of the UK Debt Management Office and occupy the same building and therefore have the same DEC and advisory report.
Due to the size of its estate, HM Revenue and Customs will place an electronic record of DECs and associated advisory reports for all properties it occupies that require a DEC in the Library as soon as possible.
It may be helpful to note that the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) has published central government department's Display Energy Certificate (DEC) operational ratings. This building level detail can be accessed through the OGC website
http://www.ogc.gov.uk/sustainability_programme_ progress.asp
and includes DEC reference numbers for each building which can be used to access relevant advisory reports on the Non-Domestic Energy Performance Certificate Register
https://www.ndepcregister.com/home.html
Justine Greening: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many properties owned by his Department were liable for payment of (a) business rates and (b) empty property rates in each of the last five years; and what the cost to the public purse was in each such year. [290603]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Information on the number of properties owned by the Department that attracted business rates and the cost in each year since 2005-06 is shown in the following table. There has been no spending by the Department on empty property rates since 2005-06.
| Number of properties | Cost of business rates (£) | |
Mr. Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289749]
Mr. Byrne: The Minister assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in HM Treasury is the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury.
The Chief Secretary to the Treasury co-ordinates the work of value for money Ministers across the Government.
HM Treasury is committed to reforming public services to improve services for the citizen and that various teams are working closely with colleagues in the centre of Government on this important agenda.
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 26 November 2008, Official Report, columns 1889-90W, how much (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) HM Revenue and Customs has spent on (i) flat screen televisions, (ii) DVD players and (iii) stereo equipment since December 2008. [289070]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information requested is set out in the following table.
| £000 | |||
| Organisation | Flat screen televisions | DVD players | Stereo equipment |
| (1) Information in relation to the Treasury is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. (2) HMRC figures may exclude flat screen televisions bought as part of a package e.g. video conferencing or closed circuit television equipment. It is not possible to identity the cost of the television element of such packages. | |||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 249W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what flexi-time arrangements were available to staff of his Department in each of the last five years; and how many staff participated in such arrangements in each such year. [290602]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: HM Treasury promotes flexible working by offering a variety of working arrangements which includes compressed hours, part-time, job-sharing, working from home and flexi-time.
Flexible working hours are available to all staff within HM Treasury, but participation is dependent upon local agreements within individual teams. The operation of these agreements is supervised by individual line managers, and not recorded centrally. Information about the number of staff participating in such arrangements could therefore be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) mobile telephones, (b) Blackberrys and (c) laptop computers have been issued to staff in his Department in each of the last five years; and how many of these were issued to (i) new staff and (ii) existing staff following (A) loss and (B) theft of a previous device. [290596]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: In respect of the numbers of mobile telephones, Blackberry devices and laptop computers issued to Treasury staff prior to 2007, I refer the hon. Lady to the answer my predecessor gave to the hon. Member for Fareham (Mr. Hoban) on 20 April 2009, Official Report, column 373W. The following table gives details of the numbers issued in the subsequent completed years.
| Number | |||
| Mobile telephones | Blackberrys | Laptop computers | |
The figures for 2008 reflect an increasing use of flexible and remote working tools within the Department as well as a laptop refresh and encryption project which took place during the year.
In respect of the replacement of missing or stolen items, I refer the hon. Lady to the answer my predecessor gave to the hon. Member for Brent, East (Sarah Teather) on 6 May 2008, Official Report, column 819W. For the numbers of lost or stolen laptop computers in the years requested, I refer the hon. Lady to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Reigate (Mr. Blunt) on 22 June 2009, Official Report, column 666W. For the numbers of lost of stolen Blackberry devices and mobile telephones, I refer the hon. Lady to the answer given by the Economic Secretary to the Treasury to the hon. Member for Fareham (Mr. Hoban) on 13 May 2009, Official Report, column 849W.
Justine Greening: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate has been made of the average length of employment of staff in the Department at each Civil Service payband. [290599]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry:
HM Treasury’s staffing and recruitment practices make provision for permanent employees to manage their careers in an active manner, as well as opportunities for people across the labour market, from both the public and private sectors, to
work in the Department on short-term loans and secondments as part of their wider careers. The following table, which sets out the average number of years spent at each payband, is based on the median average number of years employed in the Treasury. It reflects the balance the Department strikes between developing staff, promotion on merit, and developing a balanced and flexible workforce with a variety of skills to meet the Department's objectives.
| HM Treasury pay range | Civil service payband | Average number of years( 1) |
| (1) Median average number of years employed at HM Treasury, as at September 2009. | ||
John Mann: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff there were in his Department (a) in 1997 and (b) on the latest date for which figures are available. [292072]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information requested is set out in the Treasury’s annual reports for the years concerned. Those are in the Library and can be accessed via:
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/106.pdf
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/annual_report_2009_full.pdf
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 24 November 2008, Official Report, column 947W, on departmental marketing, what the cost of branding activity was for (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) HM Revenue and Customs in 2008-09. [290292]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: In 2008-09, the following was spent on branding activity:
| £ | |
Lynne Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his Department's policy to print on both sides of the paper used for correspondence; and if he will estimate the potential for reduction in paper usage arising from the introduction of such a policy. [291879]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry:
The Treasury Group remains committed to sustainable development, contributing to the UK's Sustainable Development Action Plan and striving to reduce the impact of the Group's operations on the environment. Based on year-on-year falls in
emissions to 2007-08 and an assessment of having sound carbon management systems, the Treasury Group was awarded the Carbon Trust Standard for all of its UK operations. This includes all emissions from the estate, and from all transport used by officials and ministers. The Treasury Group is proud to have achieved this, and is committed to maintaining the standard.
Specifically on paper usage, in 2008, the Treasury adjusted the default setting of all printers to print on both sides, which has significantly reduced paper usage, although single side printing may sometimes be appropriate and this is an issue we shall continue to focus on.
Justine Greening: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff took paternity leave from his Department in each of the last five years and what the average length of such leave was. [290601]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: In each of the five years to 2008-09, staff working at HM Treasury have been entitled to take up to two weeks paid paternity leave on the birth or adoption of a child. Prior to the start of 2009-10, HM Treasury did not record instances of staff paternity leave centrally; the information requested could therefore be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department spent on (a) car hire, (b) air travel, (c) hotels and (d) restaurant meals for (i) Ministers and (ii) staff in his Department in each of the last five years. [289975]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Details of spending on travel and subsistence since 2003-04 is shown in the Treasury's Annual Report and Accounts (HC 611). A breakdown of those figures into the categories requested could not be achieved within the disproportionate costs threshold.
All travel undertaken by Ministers and civil servants is in accordance with the “Ministerial Code” and the “Civil Service Management Code” respectively. All spending on official entertainment is made in accordance with the principles set out in “Managing Public Money.”
The Government published a list of all overseas travel by Ministers costing over £500 on 16 July and this can be viewed at:
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/propriety_and_ethics/ministers/travel_gifts.aspx
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what data his Department holds on the level of diversity in its recruitment of employees in each of the last three years. [290510]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Treasury publishes diversity data on recruitment on its website at:
www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/about_equality.htm
The diversity data available covers the years 2006, 2007 and 2008-09. Further information on diversity and recruitment is available in the Treasury’s equality schemes (Race, Disability and Gender) also available on the website.
Justine Greening: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the cost to his Department of sickness absence was in each of the last five years. [290598]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The following table gives the cost to HM Treasury of sickness absence in total number of working days lost for years 2007-08, and 2008-09. Published figures for 2004, 2005 and 2006 can be found on the civil service website at:
www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/who/statistics/sickness.aspx
| HM Treasury sickness absence 2007-08 and 2008-09 | ||
| Number | ||
| Average working days lost | Total days lost | |
HM Treasury systems do not record the financial costs of these sickness absence days, which could therefore be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, details of HM Treasury's staffing costs and numbers are published annually in its Departmental Reports and Accounts, copies of which are available in the Library of the House.
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many days training were provided to staff in (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) HM Revenue and Customs on managing budgets in the last 12 months; how many staff attended each of the courses provided; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the training materials provided during such training. [289127]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Treasury Group, comprising HM Treasury, the Office of Government Commerce and the Debt Management Office, provide extensive formal training to staff working on managing internal budgets, one-to-one training on demand, and, in addition, staff are able to attend a range of informal training via their individual directorates. Details of the amount of training provided are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), including the Valuation Office Agency, provides a range of tailored training to managers on budget management in order to meet the Department's financial skills and capability strategy, as well as E-learning facilities and informal on-the-job training. As part of that effort, in the last year staff were provided with 839 days of training relating specifically to managing internal budgets.
Materials for these courses are subject to copyright and restrictions on publication that apply to protected internal management information.
John Mason: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many external training courses were attended by staff of his Department in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of each course. [289691]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Due to delegated team budgets for training, this information is not held centrally and would be available only at a disproportionate cost.
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what training courses have been provided to staff at HM Revenue and Customs in the last 12 months; and at what cost. [289839]
Mr. Timms: The information on training courses provided in the last 12 months has been deposited in the Library of the House.
The information requested regarding the cost of training for the last 12 months could be available only at disproportionate cost.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of his Department’s waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289666]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: HM Treasury is committed to making operations as sustainable as possible. Detailed information containing latest figures is contained in HM Treasury Annual Report and Accounts 2008-09 (HC 611).
Mr. Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what provision is made to enable students to undertake work experience in his Department; by what means members of the public may obtain information about work experience in his Department; and if he will make a statement. [288733]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Treasury offers summer work placements to students via programmes organised by the Government Economic Service which are advertised on the GES website (www.ges.gov.uk). It also participates in the Summer Placement Scheme and Summer Development Programme organised by the Cabinet Office; these opportunities are publicised by the Fast Stream marketing team and advertised on the Fast Stream website:
www.faststream.gov.uk
12 Oct 2009 : Column 254W—continued
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to commence the distribution to charities of money from dormant bank accounts under the Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Act 2008. [289312]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The UK dormant accounts scheme enables money in dormant bank and building society accounts to be reinvested to the benefit of the community, while ensuring that the right of account holders to reclaim their money is protected.
Following the passage of the Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Act in November 2008, the Government completed the legislative framework for the scheme by passing secondary legislation to enable the FSA to regulate a reclaim fund on 29 June 2009. The FSA then published its final rules for regulating a reclaim fund on 24 July 2009. The Government are looking for the scheme to be operational as soon as possible following the authorisation of a reclaim fund.
Mr. Charles Kennedy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what assessment he has made of the effects of the recent road fuel duty increase on (a) filling stations in and (b) the economy of remote rural areas; [291662]
(2) what information his Department holds for benchmarking purposes on the cost and impact of schemes operated by other EU member states which use a derogation to apply a lower rate of fuel duty to remote areas and islands; and if he will make a statement; [291663]
(3) what recent assessment his Department has made of the effects of variation in fuel prices in other EU member states on road fuel sales in the UK and associated revenue; and if he will make a statement. [291664]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: When making decisions on fuel duty, the Chancellor takes into account all relevant economic, social and environmental factors. This includes the impact on rural areas. The increase in road fuel duty which took place on 1 September will help to support the public finances in the medium-term.
It is a key principle of the tax system that the same rate of excise duty will apply throughout the UK. The Government have therefore decided not to impose a reduced rate of fuel duty in remote areas. The Government are aware of derogations in other EU member states, but does not hold information on the cost of such schemes.
www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/source/prices
The Government have not made an assessment of the impact of fuel prices in other countries on UK prices, but all countries will be similarly affected by movements in the international oil market.
Mr. Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with representatives from each of the financial institutions which are partly or wholly owned by the Government on the Government’s objective to encourage investment in low-carbon technologies; and if he will make a statement. [290125]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government’s practice to provide details of all such meetings.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to page 40 of the joint Cabinet Office-Treasury publication Real Help for Communities: Volunteers, Charities and Social Enterprises, if he will place in the Library a copy of the research on redirection of the higher rate of gift aid from donors to charities. [292172]
Ian Pearson: Budget 2009 announced research into the effect of redirecting Gift Aid higher rate relief from donors to charities. The Government will publish the research later this year, and the full report will be available on the HM Treasury website.
John Mason: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment. [288922]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Treasury Ministers’ official duties entail visits throughout the United Kingdom.
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a copy of (a) the papers submitted by the United Kingdom, (b) the papers submitted by other G20 parties and (c) the speeches made by participants in respect of the G20 meeting on reform of the global economy in Pittsburgh on 24 and 25 September 2009. [292492]
Mr. Timms: At the London summit, leaders asked the Prime Minister as Chair to report on the adaptability and responsiveness of the international financial institutions. His report, titled ‘Supporting Global Growth’, was welcomed by leaders at the Pittsburgh summit and is available at:
http://www.pittsburghsummit.gov/resources/
Other contributions presented to the Pittsburgh summit are available at the same address. The IMF's contributions are available at:
www.imf.org
G20 leaders meet in closed session and thus specific interventions by leaders at the summit are not publicly available. However, the Leaders' Statement is available at:
http://www.pittsburghsummit.gov/mediacenter/129639.htm
Copies of the Prime Minister's report and these web pages have been placed in the Library of the House.
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the monetary value of gilts and bonds sold to organisations in (a) China and (b) India in each of the last three years. [291777]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Debt Management Office (DMO) predominantly sells gilts competitively via auctions in the primary market to the primary market dealers, that is, the Gilt-Edged Market Makers (GEMMs), only. GEMMs are financial institutions recognised as such by the DMO. The DMO does not sell gilts direct to other organisations. GEMMs place bids at auctions on behalf of their clients. Foreign investors can also acquire their gilts in the secondary market.
Mr. Brady:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the numbers of depositors with Kaupthing, Singer and
Friedlander (UK) who (a) are eligible for compensation, (b) have been compensated or informed they will be compensated and (c) are awaiting compensation from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. [292145]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) has provided the following information:
(a) The estimated number of KSF eligible depositors is 174,686;
(b) 173,703 depositors have already received compensation; and
(c) 285 applications for compensation remain under consideration by the FSCS, with around 700 application forms remaining unreturned.
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of UK residents affected by the entry into administration of Key Data Investment Services (KIS); and what assessment he has made of the financial consequences of the Financial Services Authority’s decision to require KIS to enter administration. [292416]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: On 8 June 2009, as a result of the application by the FSA on the grounds that Keydata was insolvent, the Court placed Keydata into administration.
PricewaterhouseCoopers (‘PwC’) were appointed as administrators for KIS and the administration process is still ongoing. A dedicated website and telephone number have been made available for investors and other interested parties.
The FSA is now working closely with PwC and the Financial Services Compensation Scheme as well as with other interested parties, including the Serious Fraud Office and overseas regulatory authorities. In addition HMRC is working with the administrators to establish what the tax implications of this are to ISA investors in light of all the relevant information. HMRC will soon be advising individuals as to the tax implications of their non-qualifying Keydata investments.
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 20 May 2009, Official Report, column 1401W, on Members: correspondence, when he will reply to the correspondence from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire of 15 April 2009, on green businesses. [289940]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: A reply has been sent to the hon. Member.
John Barrett: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the MP's Parliamentary Business Unit of the Tax Credit Office will be in a position to respond to the hon. Member for Edinburgh West's correspondence on 24 March and 10 June 2009 on his constituent Mr John Reid. [290002]
Mr. Timms: The Tax Credit Office has contacted the hon. Member's office about his constituent to apologise for the delay and clarify the current position.
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to reply to the letter of 10 June 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on Mr. M Rathfelder. [290236]
Mr. Timms: A reply has been sent to the hon. Member.
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to reply to the letter of 9 March 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on Mr. B. McGill. [290237]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: A reply has been sent to the right hon. Member.
John Penrose: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to reply to the letters of 20 March and 8 June 2009 from the hon. Member for Weston-Super-Mare sent on behalf of a constituent, Mr. Ian Wild. [291692]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 30 August.
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of repossessions arising from actions by sub-prime lenders in the last 12 months; and whether such repossessions are reflected in the repossession statistics compiled by the Financial Services Authority. [291812]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Government have made no estimate of the number of repossessions arising from actions by specific categories of lenders in the last 12 months. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) publishes quarterly data on residential mortgage lending, covering the period from the first quarter of 2007, available at:
http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/Doing/Regulated/Returns/IRR/statistics/index.shtml
These data are collected from all lenders with FSA authorisation, regardless of individual firm or product characteristics.
Jim Dowd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will bring forward measures to make national insurance contributions cumulative from each employment up to the maximum income level. [290083]
Mr. Timms: In October 2007 the Treasury published a report Income tax and National Insurance alignment: an evidence-based assessment. It is available at:
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/pbr_csr07_income.htm
The report noted that changing to a National Insurance system in which earnings were cumulated across all employment for those with more than one job would allow a small number of individuals (currently estimated
at around 40,000) to gain access to contributory benefits. However others, including some low earners, would lose out by having to pay more National Insurance Contributions. The report considered more widely aligning the administration of National Insurance Contributions with that of income tax. The Government's conclusion in the Report was that on balance the benefits of administrative alignment did not outweigh the costs.
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answers of 15 July 2009, Official Report, columns 482W-83W, and 30 June 2009, Official Report, column 208W, on pensions, what expenditure items are included in the row entitled other spending of Table 4.1 on page 36 of the Long-term Public Finance Report of March 2008. [289402]
Mr. Byrne: The Long-term Public Finance report and the analysis on which the report is based focus on demographic change. Table 4.1 of the Long-term Public Finance report shows the results of modelling the impact of demographic change on total expenditure (including gross investment but excluding interest and dividend payments). The 'other spending' line includes all other Government expenditure not otherwise included in table 4.1, excluding interest and dividend payments.
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the total cost of pensions for retired public sector workers in each of the next 10 years. [288182]
Mr. Byrne: The Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses (PESA) 2009 (Cmd Paper 7630) provides forward estimates of pensions in payment in the Pay As You Go (PAYG) public service schemes in table D1. These estimates are derived from spending plans and therefore cover up to 2010-11.
The main schemes covered are those for the NHS, teachers, civil service and armed forces. These figures include cash payments of members' continuing pensions, lump sums, spouses' benefits and similar payments, and bulk and individual transfers out.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consideration his Department has given to the potential role of the private sector in meeting the public sector efficiency targets published in the Financial Statement and Budget Report 2009; and if he will make a statement. [289639]
Mr. Byrne: Budget 2009 published a departmental breakdown of the Government’s £35 billion VFM target, and the “2009 VFM Update” published further detail on some of the reforms Departments will take forward to achieve their targets. Departments may use the private sector to help deliver their targets; these decisions are a matter for individual Departments to make based on their own value for money assessment.
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much public money has been spent to assist companies with private finance initiative contracts which have been adversely affected by the credit crunch; how much such expenditure has been committed but not spent; which companies (a) have been assisted and (b) are planned to be assisted in this way; and what his estimate is of the likely total public expenditure for this purpose. [292137]
Ian Pearson: No money has been spent assisting companies with private finance contracts and there are no plans to do so. In March 2009 the Treasury established its Infrastructure Financing Unit (TIFU) as a temporary and reversible initiative, which can provide loans on market terms to PFI projects struggling to reach financial close due to problems in the debt market. TIFU does not provide direct financial support to companies operating PFI contracts but lends at a commercial rate to PFI projects in procurement.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 260W—continued
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent fiscal steps he has introduced to encourage commercial property development. [291985]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: It is the Government's view that the best way to support the commercial property sector is to support the recovery of the wider economy. At pre-Budget Report 2008 and Budget 2009, the Government announced significant measures to support economic recovery in the UK, including additional support for business cashflow and investing in infrastructure, skills and innovation to provide the right environment for business growth.
reducing the main rate of VAT to 15 per cent until 31 December 2009;
measures to help SMEs facing credit constraints;
a deferral in the increase in the small companies rate of corporation tax;
temporary extension to loss relief rules; and
deferral of part of this year's business rates inflation up-rating.
Joan Walley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the opportunity cost of maintaining a UK nuclear weapons system for (a) other UK defence and security spending and (b) spending on schools and hospitals in (i) 10 years, (ii) 20 years and (iii) 40 years time; and if he will make a statement. [289767]
Mr. Byrne: Information regarding the costs of maintaining a UK nuclear deterrent was set out in the 2006 White Paper, The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent'.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the likely effects upon the economy of the redesignation of registered social landlords as public bodies for public sector borrowing requirement purposes. [291874]
Robert Neill: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will direct the National Housing and Planning Advisory Unit to assess the level of public support for abolishing stamp duty for first time buyers on properties sold for up to £250,000. [290473]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Stamp duty rates and thresholds are kept under review as part of the Budget process.
Mr. Binley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which tax schemes have been closed since 2 December 2004 as a result of retrospective legislation application. [289825]
Mr. Timms: Since 2 December 2004 a number of schemes have been closed by legislation which was enacted with retrospective effect (i.e. to a date before the announcement date). The schemes in question were addressed by the following provisions:
Section 92 Finance Act 2006 (avoidance using options etc);
Section 58 Finance Act 2008 (UK residents and foreign partnerships);
Section 67 Finance Act 2009 (deductions for employee liabilities);
Section 68 Finance Act 2009 (employment loss relief); and,
Section 61 and schedule 30 FA 2009 (financial arrangements avoidance).
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received on empty property rate relief since April 2009. [291686]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Treasury Ministers and officials receive representations from a wide range of organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government’s practice to provide details of such representations.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of landlords who have claimed wear and tear allowance against their income from property letting in each year since 2005. [292360]
Mr. Timms: The number of landlords claiming wear and tear allowance, as recorded on the self-assessment return, was 520,000 in 2005-06, 530,000 in 2006-07 and 535,000 in 2007-08, the latest year available.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will bring forward proposals to provide tax incentives to purchase cars fitted with a seat-belt reminder system; and if he will make a statement. [289619]
Mr. Timms: There are no current plans to provide tax incentives for the purchase of vehicles fitted with a seat belt reminder system.
All taxes are kept under review and announcements of any changes are made at the Budget and pre-Budget report.
Mr. Binley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) whether employment loss liabilities fall within the ambit of the Paymaster General's statement of 2 December 2004 on anti-avoidance measures; and if he will make a statement; [289824]
(2) whether tax schemes which do not involve the extraction of income from a company by an employee in a manner which is free of PAYE, income tax and national insurance contributions fall within the ambit of by the Paymaster General's statement of 2 December 2004 on anti-avoidance measures; and if he will make a statement. [289826]
Mr. Timms: The Paymaster General's statement of 2004 warned that where we become aware of arrangements which attempt to frustrate our intention that employers and employees should pay the proper amount of tax we will introduce legislation to close them down, where necessary from 2 December 2004.
It remains the Government's view that in rare cases, whether in the field of employment income or more widely, it will be appropriate for us to act retrospectively to ensure that abusive schemes are closed down rapidly and effectively. Section 68 of Finance Act 2009, dealing with employment losses was one such example.
Mike Penning: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many people in Hemel Hempstead constituency claimed working tax credit in the latest period for which figures are available; [289434]
(2) how many people in Hemel Hempstead constituency claimed child tax credit in the latest period for which figures are available. [289435]
Mr. Timms: The latest information on the number of recipient families of child and working tax credits, by parliamentary constituency, is given in the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) snapshot publication, “Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics Geographical Analyses April 2009”.
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-stats.htm
HMRC do not produce these statistics separately for child tax credit and working tax credit.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which public sector pension schemes have incurred costs arising from the abolition of dividend tax credits. [288688]
Mr. Timms: The Treasury has not made an assessment of the effect on the costs to public sector pension schemes arising from the abolition of payable dividend tax credits. The decision in 1997 to abolish payable dividend tax credits was taken to remove a distortion in the tax system, which had encouraged companies to pay out their profits in dividends, rather than retain them for reinvestment in the business. The measure was part of a wider package of measures designed to improve the climate for long-term investment in the UK.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reasons those who let caravans through caravan sites are allowed to treat their income as trading income. [292362]
Mr. Timms: In certain circumstances, the activities associated with operating a caravan site may amount to trading.
Legislation allows caravan site proprietors who have both rental income from letting caravans and trading income from running a caravan site, to treat their rental income as a trade receipt.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on the reclassification of income from holiday lets as unearned income. [289362]
Mr. Timms: Income from furnished holiday lettings will not be reclassified. It will continue to be assessed as property income, but after the repeal of the furnished holiday lettings rules it will no longer be treated as trade income for certain tax purposes.
Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government’s practice to provide details of all such meetings.
Lembit Öpik: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his Department conducted an assessment of the likely effects on the self-catering tourism industry of changes to the Furnished Holiday Lettings Scheme in 2010. [291595]
Mr. Timms: An Impact Assessment for the changes to the Furnished Holiday Lettings rules will be published at the 2009 pre-Budget report.
Danny Alexander: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is considering steps to mitigate the effects upon landlords of the changes in the furnished holiday letting rules due to take place in April 2010. [291641]
Mr. Timms: Tax policy changes and related measures are considered through the Budget process in the usual way and in the light of prevailing economic and other circumstances. The Government announced the withdrawal of the furnished holiday lettings scheme from 2010 in Budget 2009 and will be publishing draft legislation for comment alongside the pre-Budget report. An impact assessment will also be published at this time.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what loss relief will be available to those operating commercial furnished holiday letting businesses once the Furnished Holiday Letting rules are repealed. [292361]
Mr. Timms: After the repeal of the furnished holiday lettings rules, loss relief will be available to those letting furnished holiday accommodation under the property income rules.
In general, individuals may set their losses against other property income they have in the year, or against the future profits of their letting business.
In general, companies will set their losses against income from other sources in the year or future years.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reason consultation was not required to be held before the Furnished Holiday Letting rules were repealed; and if he will make a statement. [292364]
Mr. Timms: The announcement to withdraw the FHL rules was made at Budget 2009 in order to provide a period of notice to those affected, and thus allow them time to plan for the change in tax treatment.
We intend to publish draft legislation and an impact assessment at the 2009 pre-Budget report, and we will be happy to receive comments at that time. The legislation will be in a future Finance Bill.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received on compliance of the Furnished Holiday Letting rules with European Union law. [292365]
Mr. Timms: The Treasury receives representations on a range of issues. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of such representations.
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the Financial Services Authority's discharge of its responsibilities in winding up UK Land Investments. [292045]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The regulation of Collective Investment Schemes (CIS) as defined in section 235 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 is a matter for the Financial Services Authority (FSA), as the independent regulator.
On 1 April 2008 the FSA applied for a winding up petition against UK Land investments (UKLI) on the basis that: (i) UKLI had carried on and was carrying on
a regulated activity in breach of the general prohibition within the meaning of section 367(1) of the Act; (ii) UKLI was unable to pay its debts within the meaning of section 123 of the Insolvency Act 1986; and (iii) it was just and equitable that UKLI should be wound up.
The FSA had previously advised UKLI that its landbanking scheme fell within the definition of a CIS and that the operation of a CIS without authorisation by the FSA amounts to a breach of the general prohibition (section 19 of the Act) and was a criminal offence (section 23 of the Act). The FSA also advised UKLI that the investors who had invested in its scheme to date would be entitled to recover any money paid pursuant to the scheme and/or recover compensation for any loss sustained by them pursuant to section 26 of the Act.
Robert Neill: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how the Valuation Office Agency receives information on the addition to a dwelling of a conservatory. [290432]
Mr. Timms: Billing authorities have a statutory duty under section 27(6) of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 to provide the Valuation Office Agency with any information which they consider would assist in maintaining council tax valuation lists.
Adam Afriyie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many properties in Windsor constituency have been included on the Valuation Office Agency's Automated Valuation Model database. [291870]
Mr. Timms: The Valuation Office Agency's (VOA's) Automated Valuation Model (AVM) is not a database. It is the technology developed to support the valuation of dwellings. It draws on data held in the VOA's property database, which holds details of individual properties. The VOA has held information on properties for many years in order to maintain up to date valuation lists. All domestic properties appearing in the valuation list for the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead (60,837 as at 2 September 2009) are on the VOA's property database.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 265W—continued
Robert Neill: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what rights of appeal (a) council taxpayers and (b) business ratepayers have in relation to decisions of the Valuation Office Agency. [290417]
Mr. Timms: Council tax and business ratepayers have the following rights of appeal against decisions made by the Valuation Office Agency’s (VOA) listing and valuation officers:
In the first instance, a ‘proposal’ may be made to alter the valuation band or rateable value of their property. Further information on how to do this can be found on the VOA’s website at:
http://www.voa.gov.uk/council_tax/can_i_appeal.htm
http://www.saa.gov.uk/proposals.html
http://www.voa.gov.uk/business_rates/2005AppealsFAQs.htm
If a taxpayer is not satisfied with the outcome of their proposal, they may subsequently appeal to an independent valuation tribunal. Further details on how to do this can be found at:
http://www.valuationtribunal.gov.uk/Council_Tax.aspx
http://www.valuationtribunal.gov.uk/Rating.aspx
If a council taxpayer disagrees with the decision of the valuation tribunal, they may appeal to the High Court on a point of law. Further information is available at:
http://www.valuationtribunal.gov.uk/Attending_A_Hearing/Your_questions_answered.aspx
If a business ratepayer disagrees with the decision of the valuation tribunal, they may appeal to the Lands Tribunal, further information can be found at:
http://www.landstribunal.gov.uk/index.htm
http://www.landstribunal.gov.uk/Documents/ExplanatoryLeafletJune09.pdf
which also sets out the subsequent right of appeal to the Court of Appeal on a point of law.
Council tax or business ratepayers may also be able to seek a Judicial Review, by the Administrative Court, on decisions made by VOA officers. Further information is available at:
http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/cms/1220.htm
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent steps the Government have taken to assist small businesses with payment of value added tax. [291522]
Mr. Timms: The Government introduced the Business Payment Support Service (BPSS) on 24 November 2008, and extended it at Budget 2009, to help businesses in temporary financial difficulties spread their tax payments over a timetable they can afford. As of 20 September 2009, HM Revenue and Customs have agreed over 200,000 time to pay arrangements through the service.
The Government also provide assistance to small businesses with VAT payments through the VAT cash accounting and VAT annual accounting schemes, designed to help businesses manage their cash flow and to spread their VAT payments evenly.
Grant Shapps: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many claims for VAT refunds for self-build housebuilders have been received in relation to (a) new homes and (b) conversions in each year since 1997; and how many claims were accepted in each such year; [292294]
(2) what the total monetary value of VAT refunds for self-build housebuilders has been in relation to (a) new homes and (b) conversions in each year since 1997; and what the total monetary value of accepted claims was in each such year. [292295]
Mr. Timms: Until 2003, VAT refund claims from ‘do it yourself’ (DIY) house builders were handled in local VAT offices, with no central record being kept. In 2003, HM Customs and Excise (as it then was) began transferring claims to a central unit for processing. Processing of DIY claims was not fully transferred from local offices to the central unit until April 2004. That unit maintains statistics for all claims handled, which are provided as follows:
| DIY claims by number | ||||
| New homes | Conversions | Total received | Total accepted and paid | |
| DIY claims by monetary value | ||||
| £ | ||||
| New homes | Conversions | Total received | Total accepted and paid | |
The figures for 2009 cover the part year to 6 October.
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of total (a) income and (b) wealth was held by the top (i) 10, (ii) five, (iii) one, (iv) 0.1 and (v) 0.01 per cent. of the population with the percentage of each in the latest period for which figures are available; how many people were in each such group; and what the average (A) income and (B) wealth of persons in each group was. [292135]
Mr. Timms: The proportion of total income accounted for by the top 10, 5 and 1 per cent. of UK taxpayers by income can be found in table 2.4 ‘Share of total income (before and after tax) and income tax for percentile groups’, available at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/income_tax/table2-4.pdf
Information on the top 0.1 and 0.01 per cent. of UK taxpayers is not readily available.
The number and average income of taxpayers in each group can be determined from the above together with table 2.5 ‘Income Tax liabilities, by income range’, with reference to the total number of taxpayers and their income stated on this table. This is available at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/income_tax/menu.htm
Estimates for the proportion of wealth held by the top 10, 5 and 1 per cent. of the UK adult population are available up to year 2003 and are published in table 13.5 ‘Personal Wealth—distribution among the adult population of marketable wealth’ at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal_wealth/menu.htm
Information on the proportion of wealth held by the top 0.1 and 0.01 per cent. of UK taxpayers is not available.
The number of UK adults in 2003 was 46 million, from which figure the numbers in the top 10, 5 and 1 per cent. of the population can be calculated.
The average wealth of persons in each group can be calculated by:
Calculating the wealth per group using the proportions in table 13.5 referred to above and the estimate of total marketable wealth published in table 13.4, available at
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal_wealth/table13_5.pdf
Dividing by the number of people in each group.
John Mann: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer from how many residents of Bassetlaw constituency Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs has reported repayment of tax credit overpayments; and what is the sum of the overpayments outstanding. [292034]
Mr. Timms: Information about the number of residents of Bassetlaw constituency who have repaid a tax credit overpayment, and the sum of overpayments outstanding, is only available at disproportionate cost.
Estimates of the number of families with tax credit awards, including information on the annual number and value of tax credits overpaid and underpaid by parliamentary constituency, is available in the HM Revenue and Customs publications "Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics. Finalised Annual Awards. Supplement on Payments. Geographical Analyses". These publications are available at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-stats.htm
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department spent on the childcare element of the working tax credit in each quarter of the last five years for which figures are available. [290399]
Mr. Timms: Table 2.4 of the HMRC publications “Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics Finalised Awards” for the years 2003-04 to 2007-08, provides information on the estimated expenditure on the child care element. This is shown in the following table.
The same table contains estimates of the average help with child care costs these families received in each relevant year. This information is not available on a quarterly basis.
| Child care element expenditure (£ million) | Average help with child care costs per week (£) | |
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether there have been discussions between officials of his Department and the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on (a) wild animals in travelling circuses and (b) the welfare of racing greyhounds in the last 12 months. [290437]
Mr. Sutcliffe: There have been no discussions between officials in my Department and DEFRA on wild animals travelling in circuses. My Department has no responsibility for welfare of racing greyhounds, this is a matter for DEFRA. However, my officials have discussed the welfare of racing greyhounds with DEFRA officials during the last 12 months. This was in the context of the recent DEFRA consultation on the proposed introduction of regulations to promote the welfare of racing greyhounds, to be made under section 13 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the effect on the creative arts in the regions of the abolition of the regional structure of the Arts Council; and if he will make a statement. [292415]
Margaret Hodge: The re-organisation of the regional structure of Arts Council England is primarily an operational matter for the Arts Council to determine. So it is not a matter on which the Secretary of State should make an assessment but he is aware of the improvements in efficiency the new structure is designed to deliver, which he supports.
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions he had with regional Ministers before abolishing (a) the regional structure of the Arts Council and (b) the regional offices of the Libraries, Museums and Archives Service. [292425]
Margaret Hodge: Decisions on the regional structure of the Arts Council England (ACE) and the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council’s (MLA) are primarily operational matters for the bodies in question. The Secretary of State has not specifically discussed these matters with regional Ministers.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 269W—continued
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many Ministers in his Department have accepted complimentary tickets to Test matches in the 2009 Ashes series. [289361]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Two Ministers from DCMS have accepted complimentary tickets for the 2009 Ashes series.
Mr. Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he expects to announce details of Wave 3 of the Sea Change Funding programme. [290061]
Margaret Hodge: We hope to announce decisions on Wave Three of the Sea Change Programme shortly.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether he has discussed with English Heritage the establishment of a policy on the use of household wheeled refuse containers in conservation areas. [290462]
Margaret Hodge: I have had no discussions with English Heritage about the establishment of a policy on the use of household wheeled refuse containers in conservation areas. I understand that English Heritage has no plans to establish such a policy, but that it has provided advice on this issue to local authorities, local civic societies and DCMS and other Government Departments when requested.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many registered community amateur cricket clubs there were in each region in each of the last 10 years. [289360]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Sport England has advised that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) does not hold details of how many registered community amateur cricket clubs there were in each region in each of the last 10 years.
However, the ECB holds details of the number of community amateur cricket clubs registered as Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs) since CASC status was established in 2002(1).
(1) From 2004 publication of collated data changed from November to May of each year.
| Registered cricket clubs | |
| Number | |
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many (a) mobile telephones, (b) Blackberrys and (c) laptop computers issued to staff of his Department in the last 12 months were issued to (i) new staff and (ii) existing staff following the (A) loss or (B) theft of a previous device. [290541]
Mr. Sutcliffe: My Department has issued five devices following theft or loss as shown in the following table:
| (A) Loss | (B) Theft | |||
| New staff | Existing staff | New staff | Existing staff | |
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport with reference to the answer of 24 November 2008, Official Report, column 1069W, on departmental marketing, how many staff in his Department are responsible for branding activity; and what the cost of employing such staff was in 2008-09. [290294]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Brand activity is spread across the Department’s corporate communications team. The estimated time spent on brand activity was 1.0 full-time equivalent. The staff cost was £45,432.50.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 11 May 2009, Official Report, column 496W, on departmental pay, who the employers are who are paying less than £7.45 an hour for work contracted out by his Department; what the nature of the work undertaken on each contract is; how many staff at each (a) payband and (b) location are working on each such contract; what the duration of each contract is; and what union recognition agreements are in place with each contractor. [285512]
Mr. Bradshaw [holding answer 9 July 2009]: All work contracted out by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, is undertaken at its central offices in London.
| Supplier | Nature of work | Payband | Number of staff | Duration of contract | Union recognition |
|
MITIE recognises any official union their employees choose to join | |||||
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289744]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The Minister for Creative Industries, my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Erdington (Mr. Simon), has been appointed to the task of overseeing the delivery of value for money in the Department.
The Department does not currently have a public sector reform team.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what data his Department holds on the level of diversity in its recruitment of employees in each of the last three years. [290504]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The Department currently holds information on its work force database for recruitment for all seven equality strands: gender, gender identity, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, religion and belief and disability. Prior to 2007, the Department monitored on four equality strands: gender, age, disability and ethnicity.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent discussions he has had with overseas radio broadcasters whose signals are received in the UK on access to such services after radio digital switchover. [289363]
Mr. Simon: The Digital Radio Upgrade programme will affect only services licensed, and using frequencies allocated for use, in the UK. We recognise that some parts of the UK have access to overseas services; however, these are the result of overspill rather than the intended coverage. There is no legal right for consumer access to these services, which are under the jurisdiction of the relevant overseas authority. Accordingly, I have not had any discussions with overseas radio broadcasters whose signals can be received in the UK.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether there have been any recent discussions between officials of his Department and representatives of the film and television industry on the effectiveness of regulations on the use of animals in the film and television industry; and if he will review his Department's recommendations on the use of animals in the entertainment industry. [290339]
Mr. Simon: There have been no recent discussions with representatives of the film and television industry on the effectiveness of regulations on the use of animals in the film and television industry.
We last addressed this matter in 2008 when a meeting with stakeholders (including RSPCA) looked at the issue of animal welfare in the film and television industries and determined that there was not a welfare problem. It was concluded that new Government regulation would not be considered.
I have no plans to review the regulations on the use of animals in the film and television industry.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions he had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer prior to Budget 2009 on changes to the tax treatment of amusement machines from Amusement Machine Licence Duty to Gross Profits Tax. [289498]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Neither my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State nor his predecessor had discussions with HM Treasury Ministers about the change to Gross Profits Tax for amusement machines. The matter has been the subject of discussions between the Department and HM Treasury at official level since the budget.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many premises in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire have had their licence to sell alcohol taken away since the implementation of the Licensing Act of 2003. [289425]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Under the Licensing Act 2003, premises licences and club premises certificates are not always confined to the authorised sale or supply of alcohol; they also can provide regulated entertainment and/or late night refreshment.
The first DCMS statistical bulletin on alcohol, entertainment and late night refreshment, under the provisions of the Licensing Act 2003, was published on 8 November 2007. This shows that, between April 2006 and March 2007, there were no completed reviews in the Dacorum licensing authority area (which covers Hemel Hempstead) and consequently no revocations. For the county of Hertfordshire as a whole, there were 13 completed reviews which resulted in 10 premises licences or club premises certificates having other conditions added or modified, two premises licences or club premises certificates being suspended and one premises licences revoked or club premises certificate withdrawn.
The second statistical bulletin, published on 30 October 2008 and covering the period between April 2007 and March 2008, shows that there were three completed reviews in the Dacorum licensing authority area which resulted in added or modified conditions to the premises licence or club premises certificates. For Hertfordshire as a whole, there were 19 completed reviews for this period which resulted in two premises licenses or club premises certificates being suspended and two premises licences being revoked or club premises certificates being withdrawn.
Since 6 April 2007, a premises licence can be suspended by a court under section 147B(1) of the Licensing Act 2003 (as amended by the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006) for the sale or supply of alcohol, following an offence of persistently selling to under-age children. No premises licenses or club premises certificates have been suspended on these grounds in Hertfordshire county for the most recent statistical bulletin period.
Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans he has to undertake a review of the implementation of the Licensing Act 2003. [291723]
Mr. Sutcliffe: None. The Licensing Act 2003 came fully into force on 24 November 2005. On 4 March 2008, Official Report, columns 102-105WS, the then Secretary of State made a written statement announcing the completion and publication of his evaluation of the implementation of the Act. A copy of the full evaluation was also then placed in the Library of the House. The main elements of the evaluation included:
Scrutiny Councils Initiative: a final report was issued in July 2006 and an update published in 2008;
Independent Fees Panel Report: published on 25 January 2007;
Review of the Statutory Guidance: revised Guidance issued on 28 June 2007;
Live Music Forum Report: published 3 July 2007;
Alcohol, Entertainment and Late Night Refreshment Licensing Statistical Bulletin: published on 8 November 2007;
DCMS Simplification Plan: the 2(nd) Simplification Plan was published on 4 December 2007;
Closing times data commissioned by DCMS from CGA Strategy Ltd to analyse actual Saturday closing times-published on 4 March 2008; and
Home Office Report on the impact of the Licensing Act 2003 on levels of crime and disorder: published on 4 March 2008.
The Department continues to monitor the impact of the 2003 Act.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 274W—continued
Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what funds his Department makes available for preservation of war memorials. [292381]
Margaret Hodge:
The Memorials Grant Scheme is administered by DCMS and operates UK-wide. It gives grants equivalent to the VAT incurred by charities and faith groups to establish or repair public memorial structures. It is not possible to say how much funding has been disbursed specifically to support War Memorials,
but the scheme has given grants worth almost £1.5 million in England since 2005, of which over £1.1 million has helped to establish the Armed Forces Memorial.
English Heritage is the Government-sponsored body responsible for protecting and promoting England’s spectacular historic environment and ensuring that its past is researched and understood. Accordingly, English Heritage and the Wolfson Foundation, in association with the War Memorials Trust, provide further grants for the repair and conservation of free-standing war memorials in England.
Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what statutory powers he has in respect of the protection of war memorials in the UK. [292382]
Margaret Hodge: There are estimated to be more than 60,000 war memorials throughout the United Kingdom. Statutory designation through listing is the route by which war memorials can be protected as structures of special architectural or historic interest. Where a war memorial is listed or forms part of a listed building, the Secretary of State has the power to undertake urgent works or ultimately to compulsorily purchase it if proper steps are not being taken to preserve it. These powers fall in the first instance to local authorities. Any works to memorials that are listed buildings would require the relevant consent.
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much has been spent on the International Inspiration programme to date; and where that money has been spent. [288085]
Tessa Jowell [holding answer 20 July 2009]: I have been asked to reply as Minister for the Olympics.
The International Inspiration programme is operating in Azerbaijan, Brazil, India, Palau, Zambia, Bangladesh, Mozambique, Jordan and Trinidad and Tobago and South Africa, with scoping visits having taken place in Ghana, Nigeria and Malaysia.
The total expenditure since the start of the programme in October 2007 until March 2009 has been £7,681,541.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to increase participation rates in sport among young people in (a) North West Cambridgeshire constituency, (b) Cambridgeshire, (c) Peterborough, (d) the East of England and (e) England; and if he will make a statement. [289240]
Mr. Sutcliffe: We are not able to break down all investment in sport for young people to a local level. However, from 2008 to 2011 the Government are investing £783 million through the PE and Sport Strategy for Young People (PESSYP), building on the achievements of the previous national strategy and £1.5 billion invested between 2003-08.
We have expanded our ambition for PE and sport. As part of our Olympic Legacy promises, we want to create a world-class system for PE and sport in England and
ensure every child has access to five hours of PE and sport per week, with three hours for 16 to 19-year-olds.
The Sport Unlimited programme (being delivered through the County Sport Partnership network) will target 900,000 semi-sporty young people by 2011 and provide a greater range of attractive and sustainable activities based on what young people want. It aims to reach 9,570 young people in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough and 101,789 young people in the East of England.
In addition Sport England has a target of getting 1 million people doing more sport by 2012-13, which includes those aged 16 to 25. National governing bodies of sport (NGBs) are placed at the heart of Sport England’s strategy as it is their networks of community clubs, coaches, officials and volunteers that will drive delivery. NGBs have just been awarded £480 million over the next four years to deliver their plans to grow and sustain participation and nurture those with sporting talent.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to increase participation rates in sport among young people in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum, (c) Hertfordshire, (d) the South East of England and (e) England; and if he will make a statement. [290307]
Mr. Sutcliffe: We are not able to break down all investment in sport for young people to a local level. However, from 2008 to 2011 the Government are investing £783 million through the PE and Sport Strategy for Young People (PESSYP), building on the achievements of the previous national strategy and £1.5 billion invested between 2003-08.
We have expanded our ambition for PE and sport. As part of our Olympic Legacy promises, we want to create a world-class system for PE and sport in England and ensure every child has access to five hours of PE and sport per week, with three hours for 16 to 19-year-olds.
The Sport Unlimited programme (being delivered through the County Sport Partnership network) will target 900,000 semi-sporty young people by 2011 and provide a greater range of attractive and sustainable activities based on what young people want. It aims to reach 22,968 young people in Hertfordshire and 129,105 young people in the South East.
In addition Sport England has a target of getting 1 million people doing more sport by 2012-13, which includes those aged 16 to 25. National governing bodies of sport (NGBs) are placed at the heart of Sport England’s strategy as it is their networks of community clubs, coaches, officials and volunteers that will drive delivery. NGBs have just been awarded £480 million over the next four years to deliver their plans to grow and sustain participation and nurture those with sporting talent.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much funding his Department plans to allocate to local authorities for the free swimming programme in each of the next five years. [289245]
Mr. Sutcliffe: £140 million has been allocated to local authorities to support the Free Swimming Programme over the next two years; discussions will take place to decide funding of the Free Swimming Programme beyond 2011.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what criteria his Department uses to determine the amount of funding awarded to each local authority for the free swimming programme. [289247]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The funding for the Free Swimming Programme for those aged 60 or over and 16 or under has been provided according to a formula based on the size of the local populations of those age groups in those local authorities who choose to opt into the scheme.
The capital reward funding for modernising pool provision payments was based on the total local population, using the latest mid-2006 census statistics.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many local authorities have opted into his Department's free swimming initiative. [289248]
Mr. Sutcliffe: 259 local authorities in England have opted into the Free Swimming Programme for those aged 60 and over; 190 local authorities in England have agreed to take part in both the aged 60 and over and 16 and under elements of the Free Swimming Programme.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent estimate he has made of the number of (a) young and (b) elderly people who have participated in his Department's free swimming scheme in each Lancashire constituency in the last six months. [286792]
Mr. Sutcliffe: We are closely monitoring the number of free swims that have taken place in both the 16 and under, and the 60 and over, elements of the Free Swimming Programme and will publish the results shortly.
James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many reminder letters were sent by TV Licensing to (a) residential and (b) commercial addresses in (i) England and Wales and (ii) Rochford and Southend East constituency in the last 12 months; and what estimate he has made of the proportion of these which relate to premises at which there is no means of receiving television programmes. [291389]
Mr. Bradshaw [holding answer 16 September 2009]: This is a matter for the BBC and my Department does not hold this information. According to figures provided by the BBC, however, the number of reminder letters sent to residential and commercial addresses in England and Wales between 1 September 2008 and 31 August 2009 is as follows:
| Number | |
The BBC is unable to provide figures relating to Rochford and Southend, East constituencies as the BBC does not collect information by constituency area.
The BBC does not estimate the proportion of premises which do not have the means of receiving TV programmes. Instead, the BBC relies on individuals informing them that they do not require a licence.
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many pensioners resident in Bolton received a free television licence on the grounds that they are over the age of 75 years. [291642]
Mr. Bradshaw: I understand from the BBC that as at March 2009, the number of people in receipt of a free over 75 licence, where Bolton was listed as the postal town in which they lived, was 14,876. Please note that this does not cover all other towns/villages in the Bolton postcode area, but only those addresses where Bolton is listed as the postal town. It is also important to note that the number of free over 75 licences will not correspond directly to the number of over 75 residents in Bolton, as only one licence is needed per household.
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much the report Digital Britain: Attitudes to supporting non-BBC regional news from the TV licence fee cost to produce; and how much was paid to TNS-BMRB to carry out the polling in the report. [292152]
Mr. Bradshaw: The report Digital Britain: Attitudes to supporting non-BBC regional news from the TV licence fee was produced by TNS-BMRB to reflect and analyse the results of the polling contained within the report—this was one single piece of work for which they received one single commissioning and one single payment.
Following competitive tendering, TNS-BMRB were awarded the contract worth £61,340 excluding VAT, which included reporting.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department spent on monitoring air pollution in the latest year for which figures are available. [290260]
Jim Fitzpatrick: In the financial year 1 April 2008 to 31 March 2009, DEFRA spent £6,087,839 on monitoring air pollution, spread across 15 separate outsourced contracts. This addressed both the levels of pollutants in the air and their deposition either in the “dry” form or in rain. Breaking this figure down further:
£4,767,407 was spent on monitoring with the primary purpose of meeting the mandatory requirements of European legislation;
an additional £882,854 was spent on monitoring with the primary purpose of meeting other international obligations, either at EU or United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) level; and
£437,578 was spent on monitoring to provide additional information necessary to the development of air pollution policy in the UK.
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the number of animals which have died as a result of being left in cars in hot weather in each of the last five years. [290304]
Jim Fitzpatrick: No records are held centrally on this.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will review the penalties for those convicted of causing unnecessary suffering to animals. [290358]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Animal Welfare Act 2006 is due to undergo a review of its effectiveness since it came into force in April 2007. As part of that review we will look at whether there is a need to increase the penalties.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether his Department has issued guidance on dogs left in cars and temperature. [290367]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Yes. DEFRA has published a leaflet; ‘Protecting the welfare of pet dogs and cats during journeys’, which includes guidance in respect of dogs overheating.
Dan Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to publish codes of practice on the welfare of (a) dogs and (b) cats under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. [290068]
Jim Fitzpatrick: At the end of last year, we completed a public consultation exercise on three draft codes—for the keeping of cats, dogs and equines. We are now considering the many responses we had to the consultation on each draft code and will then ask Parliament to approve the revised codes. Assuming parliament approve the codes, they will come into force on 6 April 2010.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department has spent on animal welfare-related initiatives in the last 12 months. [290352]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The administrative costs of the Animal Welfare Team in DEFRA were £1,153,087 for the 12 months from September 2008 to August 2009. During the same period, £767,151 was spent on animal welfare initiatives and delivery work. In addition, £2,963,372 was spent on animal welfare research and development in the 12 months from April 2008 to March 2009.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he has made a recent assessment of the effect on the level of funding for his Department's animal welfare initiatives of the recession. [290353]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Ministers and officials keep the impact of the recession under review. No changes are considered to be necessary to the level of funding available for animal welfare initiatives.
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department takes to protect the honey bee population; what recent assessment he has made of the level of threat to the health of them; and if he will make a statement. [291818]
Jim Fitzpatrick: DEFRA's bee health programme, undertaken by the Food and Environment Research Agency's (Fera) National Bee Unit, provides an advisory and inspection service as well as a substantial training and education programme, free of charge to all beekeepers.
In recognition of the increasing threats to honey bees, the 'Healthy Bees' plan was launched on 9 March and is aimed at sustaining honey bee health and beekeeping in England and Wales over the next decade. A key part of this is working more closely with a wide range of bee stakeholders on practical actions and priorities. Additional funding of £2.3 million has been allocated to Fera during 2009-2011 to put more inspectors out in the field and collect more information on the degree of threat to the health of honey bee colonies. An enhanced education programme will drive up beekeeping skills, particularly husbandry standards and disease awareness. Our improved understanding of the national position will feed into a more effective and focused disease control and surveillance programme.
DEFRA also commissions research on bee health and, in addition to funding an ongoing investigative programme at Fera, is contributing £2.5million to the insect pollinator initiative and has recently invited proposals for three additional projects on honey bees to be undertaken between November 2009 and March 2010.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 280W—continued
Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what funding he has provided for research into the impact of seagull droppings on town centres in (a) 2009-10 and (b) subsequent years; and if he will make a statement. [292153]
(a) None
(b) None.
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many coastal change pathfinders he expects to be created following the consultation on coastal change policy; and if he will make a statement. [290054]
Huw Irranca-Davies: The Consultation on Coastal Change Policy was launched alongside the pathfinder competition on 15 June 2009. It included a number of criteria against which bids from local authorities interested in becoming pathfinders will be assessed. The number of pathfinders that are created will depend on the nature of the bids received and how well they meet the published criteria.
The closing date for bids was 11 September 2009 and I can confirm that 20 bids have been received. These are now being assessed against the published criteria and I expect to announce the selected pathfinders later in the autumn.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the effects on public health of odour emissions from mushroom composting sites in England. [291238]
Jim Fitzpatrick [holding answer 16 September 2009]: Mushroom composting operations which produce compost for sale are regulated under the local authority pollution control regime. It is intended shortly to extend this form of regulation to all mushroom composting operations. A key focus of such regulation is on the control of odour emissions, which can be particularly offensive. No assessment has been made of the effect of the odour emission on public health.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what stocktake meetings his Department has had with the Prime Minister’s Delivery Unit in the last 12 months. [289943]
Dan Norris: The PMDU is in constant contact with Departments as part of its process of taking stock of delivery. It reports regularly to the PM, the Treasury and the Departments concerned.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department spent on newspaper advertising carried in each newspaper in the most recent year for which figures are available. [289505]
Dan Norris: Please find as follows a table which indicates newspaper advertising carried in each newspaper for 2008.
| Title/Display | 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2008 t otal (£) |
Please find as follows costs for statutory and recruitment advertising. As a number of DEFRA's recruitment adverts are placed through the Cabinet Office framework as part of a whole advertising campaign (campaigns can include the preparation of application packs, advertisements, sifting and assessments) it is not possible to split out the advertising element at a proportionate cost.
| Classified/Recruitment | £ |
Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what databases are (a) owned and (b) maintained by his Department. [291845]
Dan Norris: DEFRA own and maintains a wide range of databases reflecting its diverse policy and regulatory functions. A full list could be provided only at disproportionate cost to the Department.
However, DEFRA’s information asset register does provide details of many of the databases managed by the Department. This register is available on the Department’s website at:
http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/opengov/defra/available/iar/index.htm
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many members of staff have (a) been dismissed and ( b) had their contract terminated by his Department in each of the last five years; what the reason was in each case; and what the severance costs in relation to (i) dismissal and (ii) contract termination were in each such year. [290526]
Dan Norris: The following table details the number of employees dismissed from DEFRA and its executive agencies in each of the last five years together with the reasons and associated costs where appropriate:
| Financial year | Performance | Attendance | Misconduct | Costs (£) |
| (1) Withheld on confidentiality grounds Notes: 1. The data are for DEFRA's executive agencies but not non departmental public bodies as sourcing this information can be supplied only at disproportionate cost. 2. Because of the small number of dismissals in these years, we cannot give figures because of the possibility of identifying individuals. | ||||
These dismissals were the result of staff undergoing procedures for unsatisfactory performance (including probation), unsatisfactory attendance and misconduct.
The Civil Service Management Code sets out the requirements for Departments to have procedures in place to deal with discipline, attendance and performance issues. All dismissals are conducted in line with DEFRA's misconduct, attendance and performance policies and procedures, which are available to staff via DEFRA's intranet.
The following table details the number of employees who have had their contract terminated as a result of redundancy in each of the last five years together with associated severance costs where appropriate:
| Financial year | Number of redundancies | Costs (£) |
| Notes: 1. The data are for DEFRA's executive agencies but not non departmental public bodies as sourcing this information can be provided only at disproportionate cost threshold. 2. Because of the small number of redundancies in this year, we cannot give figures because of the possibility of identifying individuals. | ||
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what flexi-time arrangements were available to staff of his Department in each of the last five years; and how many staff participated in such arrangements in each such year. [290528]
Dan Norris: DEFRA and its agencies are committed to helping their staff to maintain a healthy work-life balance. Managers and employees are encouraged to think creatively about working patterns to help ensure the Department delivers a high quality service to its customers whilst accommodating the flexible working requests of its employees wherever possible.
In doing so, DEFRA meets the legal requirement to provide certain employees the right to request flexible working arrangements. Eligible employees are those responsible for bringing up a young (under 16) or disabled (under 18) child and those who are responsible for caring for an adult.
The flexible working practices in place for staff in DEFRA include:
Part-time working
Working compressed hours
Working flexi-time
Job share arrangements
Working from home.
DEFRA has also promoted the Civil Service Job Share website that was launched in May 2009 to help its employees find job share partners.
In terms of DEFRA'S flexi-time provisions, all staff below senior civil service (SCS) are eligible to apply to participate. The system allows employees to accrue time worked over and above their conditioned hours which they can then take in addition to their annual leave entitlement with approval from their manager.
Requests by staff to participate in the flexi-time arrangements are agreed, or otherwise, by line managers and no records are held centrally. These data can therefore be provided only at a disproportionate cost.
Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many press officers his Department employs. [291844]
Dan Norris: The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs currently employs 18 full-time equivalent press officers.
Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many of his Department’s staff have their main place of work (a) in and (b) outside London. [291851]
Dan Norris: The following table shows the number of staff in DEFRA and its agencies that work in London offices and the number that work outside London. The figures are staff in post (headcount) as at 31 August 2009.
| Department/agency | London-based | Outside London | Total |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 284W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent estimate he has made of the average length of employment of staff of his Department at each Civil Service payband. [290524]
Dan Norris: The average (median) length of service in years for staff in each grade in DEFRA and its agencies as at 31 March 2009 is shown in the following table.
| Grade | DEFRA | AH | CEFAS | CSL | GDS | MFA | RPA | VLA | VMD |
| (1) Where there are fewer than five staff in the grade, the information is withheld for confidentiality reasons. | |||||||||
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with reference to the answer of 25 November 2008, Official Report, column 1171W, on departmental marketing, how many staff in his Department are responsible for branding activity; and what the cost of employing such staff was in 2008-09. [290293]
Dan Norris: One person in my Department is involved in branding activity on a regular basis dealing with questions from customers and stakeholders on use of the brand and the provision of logos and other collateral. This is not a full-time role. It occupies around 20 per cent. of the individual's time. The cost in 2008-09 is estimated to have been £10,700.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many staff took paternity leave from his Department in each of the last five years; and what the average duration of such leave was in each such year. [290527]
Dan Norris: DEFRA provides paternity leave to allow partners to support the prime carer and spend time with a new child following a birth or adoption.
The number of staff who took paternity leave and the average length of such leave in DEFRA and its agencies is shown in the following table.
| Number of staff | Average length of leave (days) | |
| Key: AH =Animal Health Agency CEFAS = Centre for Environment Fisheries and Aquaculture Science CSL = Central Science Laboratory GDS = Government Decontamination Service MFA = Marine and Fisheries Agency RPA = Rural Payments Agency VLA = Veterinary Laboratories Agency VMD = Veterinary Medicines Directorate | ||
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what employee reward schemes are offered to staff of his Department; what the purpose of each scheme is; how many staff participate in each scheme; and what the cost of operating each scheme was in each of the last five years. [290530]
Dan Norris: In addition to base pay, DEFRA operates a number of performance related pay schemes which are available to all staff in the Department.
For the Senior Civil Service (SCS)
Non-consolidated performance related variable pay rewards in-year performances in relation to agreed objectives, or short term personal contribution to wider organisational objectives. Such payments are paid in addition to base pay increases and do not count towards pension.
Performance related variable pay is allocated by Departments from a ‘pot’ expressed as a percentage of the SCS salary bill, which is agreed centrally each year following the Senior Salaries Review Body recommendations. The intention is that such payments should be differentiated in order to recognise those who have performed most significantly during the year.
The following table shows the number and total amount of performance payments awarded to SCS in core-DEFRA and its Executive Agencies in each of the last four years. Due to systems changes, data prior to 2005-06 is available only at disproportionate cost.
| £ | ||
| Number of payments | Total value | |
For staff at Grade 6 and below
The performance related variable pay scheme provides staff in DEFRA and those agencies covered by the core-Department’s reward arrangements, with recognition and reward for delivery of an outstanding outcome or performance that significantly exceeds normal expectations. The process provides staff at all grades with an opportunity to earn such an award, and ensure that achievements in operational, policy and corporate services areas are recognised as being of equal esteem. Such payments are paid in addition to base pay increases and do not count toward pension.
In-year performance payments, up to a maximum of £750, paid to individuals or teams in recognition of one-off achievements during the year; and
Annual performance payments that, in 2007 and 2008, were paid to the top 10 per cent. of performers for delivery of an outstanding outcome or performance sustained throughout the whole year.
The following table shows the number and total amount of annual and in-year performance payments awarded to staff in core-DEFRA (including staff who transferred to DECC in October 2008) and those Executive Agencies covered by DEFRA terms and conditions at that time. Due to systems changes, data prior to 2005-06 is available only at disproportionate cost.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 287W—continued
| In-year payments | Annual payments | ||
Performance related pay schemes encourage high attainment because payments have to be earned each year. They help drive high performance in Departments and agencies and support better public service delivery.
Details of the number and total amounts of payments made under the reward schemes in DEFRA’s Executive Agencies not covered by DEFRA’s terms and conditions are provided as follows.
The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) operates an Annual Appraisal ‘Exceeded’ performance payment scheme and Special Recognition Scheme, similar to DEFRA’s in-year performance payments.
Details of staff who have received payments are shown as follows:
| Payments in financial year | |||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science
| £000 | |||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
| Notes: The CEFAS performance related pay (PRP) scheme has varied in recent years. It comprises a “corporate performance pay” element payable to eligible staff as well as an “individual performance related pay” (iPRP) element for a smaller proportion of staff. In 2008-09 the weighting of the iPRP element was increased while the corporate pay element decreased. The table shows total costs charged, including CEFAS NI contributions, for both the corporate and iPRP elements. A summary of the 2008-09 scheme allows for: A Corporate performance element for eligible staff (as per total staff) of 2.2 per cent. of salary, explicitly linked to achievement of agreed agency targets. A further corporate performance “growth” element for all eligible staff of up to 1.3 per cent. of salary could be awarded, this must be self-funded and is explicitly linked to generation of additional income from sources other than DEFRA. An iPRP element awarded at two levels, 4 per cent. or 8 per cent., for approximately 25 per cent. and 15 per cent. of staff respectively. | |||||
2. CEFAS Staff Recognition Schemes
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
The scheme is open to all staff, excluding Board Members, and is awarded in recognition of an outstanding piece of work or contribution to CEFAS. The awards are presented as £50 vouchers for M&S and are allocated pro rata across divisions.
Veterinary Laboratories Agency
Staff Suggestions/ Innovations Scheme
| £ | ||
| Number of payments | Total value | |
| £ | ||
| Number of payments | Total value | |
| £ | ||
| Number of payments | Total value | |
| £ | ||
| Number of payments | Total value | |
Food and Environment Research Agency
| £ | ||
| Number of payments | Total value | |
Intellectual Property Awards—rewards innovation and invention
| £ | ||
| Number of payments | Total value | |
Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding each of his Department's (a) executive agencies and (b) sponsored bodies received in the last five years; and how much each will receive in the (i) 2009-10 and (ii) 2010-11 financial years. [289681]
Dan Norris: The figures in the following tables reflect the actual administration, programme and capital expenditure for the period 2004-05 to 2008-09; and planned administration, programme and capital budgets for 2009-10 and 2010-11 by each of the Department's (a) executive agencies and (b) sponsored bodies:
| (a) Executive Agencies | |||||||
| £ million | |||||||
| Actual | Budget | ||||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 290W—continued
DEFRA's other Executive Agencies—the Food and Environment Research Agency (FERA), the Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA), the Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) and the Centre for Environment,
Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS)—recover their full economic costs through charges made to customers for services provided.
| (b) Key sponsored bodies | |||||||
| £ million | |||||||
| Actual | Budget | ||||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | |
| (1) £5 million of capital grant was brought forward from 2010-11 to 2009-10 for infrastructure projects under the Government's fiscal stimulus initiative. (2) Excludes the Agency's Closed Pension Fund. £20 million of capital grant was brought forward from 2010-11 to 2009-10 for flood risk management work as part of the Government's fiscal stimulus initiative. (3) Prior to 2007-08, DEFRA did not fund JNCC directly. DEFRA funding to JNCC was provided through English Nature and its successor body Natural England. Funding for JNCC was also provided by the devolved administrations through Scottish Natural Heritage and the Countryside Council for Wales and, from 2006-07, the Northern Ireland Department of Environment. (4) Covers funding for existing National Parks and the Broads Authority. Funding for the new South Downs National Park is excluded as there will not be an Authority until 2010-11 at the earliest and the grant has yet to be agreed. (5) Figures for NE represent DEFRA core funding plus annually agreed elements for cost neutral recharges for common services such as IT and HR support. The recharges for 2010-11 have yet to be finalised and are therefore not included in the 2010-11 budget figures. (6) Data for the years 2004-05 to 2008-09 is based on grant claimed by WRAP from DEFRA. Data for 2009-10 is based on DEFRA's grant offer to WRAP. Data for 2010-11 is based on DEFRA's indicative grant offer to WRAP. As a result of the implementation of the Delivery Landscape Review, data for 2009-10 and 2010-11 includes funding previously provided separately by DEFRA to Action Sustainability, Centre for Remanufacturing and Reuse, BREW Centre for local authorities, Envirowise, Construction Resources and Waste Platform and the National Industrial Symbiosis programme. Data for 2009-10 includes funding provided in Budget 2009 for capital expenditure on anaerobic digestion and in-vessel composting infrastructure. | |||||||
Since 2007-08, the costs of funding JNCC have been shared by the four sponsoring administrations according to a funding formula whereby DEFRA alone funds the costs of JNCC's work on reserved matters such as marine work beyond territorial waters, overseas territories and international conventions. This element of the budget is set out in the table above. The remaining costs are shared by DEFRA (49.25 per cent.) funded through Natural England; Scottish Executive (29 per cent.) funded through Scottish Natural Heritage; Welsh Assembly Government (14.5 per cent.) funded through the Countryside Council for Wales; and DOE Northern Ireland (7.25 per cent.). The full GIA figures for JNCC, including contributions from the devolved administrations, are as follows
| £ million | |
In 2009-10, further funding (£1.5 million) has been made available from the DEFR Marine programme to JNCC for the establishment and monitoring of marine protected areas/marine conservation zones (MPAs/MCZs) and broader marine biodiversity monitoring needs.
Only the DEFRA funding for JNCC's work on reserved matters has so far been determined for 2010-11. The costs to be shared amongst the four sponsoring administrations and DEFRA marine funding have yet to be agreed.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289741]
Dan Norris: The Secretary of State is responsible for overseeing the delivery of value for money within the Department.
The Department is committed to reforming public services to improve services for the citizen, and various teams are working closely with colleagues in the centre of Government on this important agenda.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what data his Department holds on the level of diversity in its recruitment of employees in each of the last three years. [290505]
Dan Norris: Information on the diversity of Government departments, including DEFRA, is published annually and is available via the link provided at:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=2899&Pos=&ColRank=1&Rank=422
Information on the DEFRA employee diversity profile as at 31 March 2008 was published in the Diversity Workforce Monitoring Report and data for 31 March 2009 will be published later in the year.
http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/diversity/pdf/workforce-monitoring-report-2008.pdf
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of sickness absence in each of the last five years. [290523]
Dan Norris: An estimate of the cost of sickness absence in DEFRA and its agencies in each of the last two financial years is shown in the following table. Comparable costs for earlier years are unavailable.
| £ million | |
There is no agreed method of calculating the cost of sickness absences in the civil service. DEFRA has calculated the annual cost by multiplying the number of working days lost due to sickness in each grade by the average salary for that grade. No account has been taken of staff on long-term sick who are on reduced or no pay, which would reduce the totals.
DEFRA manages sickness absences in line with its sickness absence policy. This includes facilitating timely employee access to occupational health advice, medical or well-being interventions. Long-term sick employees are encouraged to return to work on a programme of recuperative duties where appropriate. All individuals returning to work from sickness absence will have a ‘welcome back’ discussion with their manager.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many external training courses were attended by staff of his Department in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of each course. [289689]
Dan Norris: The information requested is not held centrally, as training budgets are delegated to divisions and individual managers within the Department.
As a consequence the information requested could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what provision is made to enable students to undertake work experience in his Department; by what means members of the public may obtain information about work experience in his Department; and if he will make a statement. [288730]
Dan Norris: Work experience is currently provided in DEFRA as follows:
Five graduates in their penultimate year of undergraduate study are currently on placements with DEFRA which commenced on 6 July 2009, three via the Cabinet Office Summer Development Programme (ethnic minorities) and two from the Summer Placement Scheme (disability).
We have also provided two further placements to interns, one on a four-week short-term contract and one on a voluntary basis.
These paid periods of work experience last for 12 weeks, and are intended to develop interns' work skills and increase their employability.
Members of the public may obtain information on this type of work experience directly from civil service/Cabinet Office recruitment material and via their school/university careers service.
Additionally, DEFRA receives requests for ad hoc periods of work experience from both school and university students. Where possible, provision for this is made at local level subject to legal requirements and departmental workload.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether his Department was represented at the RSPCA Status Dogs summit 2009. [290369]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Yes. The summit was attended by DEFRA's Chief Veterinary Officer, who delivered a presentation, and by an official from the department.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will issue guidance on the desirable frequency of collection of household waste in hot weather. [290435]
Dan Norris: The frequency with which a local authority collects household waste is a matter for that authority to decide. The Government believe local authorities are best placed to make these local operational decisions and so does not interfere.
However, the Government do have a role in ensuring that local authorities are as well informed as possible when making their decisions on waste collection and recycling services. The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), through its Recycling and Organics Technical Advisory Team (ROTATE), is able to advise local authorities on the available options.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many times his Department has been taken to an employment tribunal in each of the last five years; what the reason cited in each case was; and in how many cases the tribunal found in favour of the (a) employee and (b) Department. [290525]
Dan Norris: DEFRA and its executive agencies have been taken to an employment tribunal 13 times in the last five years. As the number of employment tribunals in each of the last five years is such a small number, we cannot give further details because of the possibility of giving away the identity of the individuals concerned.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 294W—continued
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many (a) letters of warning, (b) infringement notices and (c) prosecutions have been instigated by the European Commission against his Department and its predecessor in relation to EU directives since May 1997; and what the reasons for the Commission's action were in each case. [290257]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The European Commission's procedures in relation to formal infringement proceedings against EU member states are based on Article 226 and Article 228 of the treaty establishing the European Community. They provide for a staged approach to infringement action comprising:
(a) Letter putting a member state on formal notice of a possible breach of the EC treaty;
(b) Formal determination, or Reasoned Opinion, by the Commission that a member state is in breach of the treaty; and
(c) Referral to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) for a ruling that a member state is in breach.
(a) Letter putting a member state on formal notice of possible failure to comply with a judgment of the ECJ under Article 226;
(b) Reasoned Opinion that a member state has failed to comply with a ECJ judgment under Article 226;
(c) Referral to the ECJ for a ruling that member state is in breach of its treaty obligations and application for a financial penalty.
On this basis, the relevant information in respect of this Department and its predecessors since May 1997 is:
| Reasons for Commission's action | |||
| Stage | Non-communication( 1) | Non-conformity( 2) | Non-application( 3) |
| (1) Domestic transposition measures are not notified to the Commission on time. (2) Transposition legislation is in some way inadequate. (3) Otherwise timely and technically adequate legislation is alleged to be improperly implemented on the ground. | |||
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what transposition date his Department has set in respect of each EU directive relating to the environment which has entered into force since May 1997. [290259]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The analysis required to compile this information from records held by DEFRA would incur disproportionate costs.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether his Department has authorised sites in Hertfordshire for use for experiments relating to genetically-modified crops. [289427]
Dan Norris: Between 1994 and 2002 we authorised experimental trials of GM crop plants to take place at various sites in Hertfordshire, as set out in the following table. No trials have taken place in Hertfordshire since 2003.
| Town or village | Ordnance Survey grid reference | Crop type |
| (1) Best available information | ||
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for what reasons greyhound racing tracks affiliated to the Greyhound Board of Great Britain are exempt from the proposed new licensing requirements for the promotion of the welfare of racing greyhounds. [290355]
Jim Fitzpatrick:
The regulations we have proposed will only exempt tracks that are affiliated to a body that has gained United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) status in respect of the enforcement of the standards set down in the regulations. Only if the Greyhound Board of Great Britain secures UKAS accreditation as an enforcement body for the standards in the regulations will any track affiliated to it be exempt. Not to exempt
such tracks would, in effect, mean that these tracks would be inspected by two different bodies for the same welfare standards.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the timetable is for the introduction of regulations for the promotion of the welfare of racing greyhounds. [290356]
Jim Fitzpatrick: We have recently published the summary of the responses to the public consultation we held on our proposals to introduce regulations to promote the welfare of racing greyhounds. As indicated in the summary, we intend to lay regulations before Parliament this autumn. Subject to approval by Parliament, it is our intention that these regulations would come into force on 6 April 2010.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which animal welfare organisations his Department has consulted as part of its review of regulations relating to the welfare of racing greyhounds. [290357]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Many animal welfare organisations submitted responses to the recent DEFRA consultation on proposals for racing greyhound regulations. The summary of the responses to the consultation, which we have recently published on our website, provides a full list of all the organisations that responded. Prior to the public consultation, DEFRA formed a number of working groups to help advise on the contents of the regulations. As well as representatives of the industry, veterinarians and local authorities, representatives of welfare groups were also represented. These included the Dogs Trust, the RSPCA and the League Against Cruel Sports.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress has been made on the Environment Agency's investigation into the maintenance of ventilation stack monitors at Hartlepool nuclear power station; and if he will make a statement. [289717]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Environment Agency and British Energy have worked to ensure that a replacement project completed in March 2009, has provided equipment suitable for continued operations. All seven replacement ventilation stack sampling systems are in operation and the Environment Agency will continue to monitor the performance of these systems.
Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment he has made of levels of illegal export of hazardous waste materials to Brazil; and if he will make a statement. [289686]
Dan Norris:
The UK was informed by the Government of Brazil of up to 100 containers at ports in Brazil alleged to contain potentially hazardous waste materials.
As the competent authority for the waste shipment controls in England and Wales, the Environment Agency commenced an investigation and contacted the Brazilian authorities to establish the precise nature of the alleged illegal activities. The shipping lines contracted to transport the containers from the UK to Brazil agreed to repatriate the containers to the UK at their own expense. 81 containers have now been returned. The remaining containers are due back in the UK later in September. The Environment Agency is carrying out an investigation of the containers and will then ensure the waste is handled and disposed of correctly.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions (a) he and (b) his officials have had with Ministers and officials of (i) the Department of Communities and Local Government and (ii) the Department for Energy and Climate Change on implementation of the provisions of the EU Waste Incineration Directive. [291992]
Dan Norris: No recent meetings have been held between officials from DEFRA, the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Department of Energy and Climate Change about the implementation of the Waste Incineration Directive.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps are being taken to ensure that trade waste collected by local authorities is classified as such and not as municipal waste. [291964]
Dan Norris: Commercial waste collected by a local authority is, and should be classified as, municipal waste. Therefore, we will not be taking any steps to stop local authorities classifying it as such.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 298W—continued
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the outcome was of the meeting of the inter-departmental ministerial group on biodiversity on 11 May 2009. [290383]
Huw Irranca-Davies: The meeting of the inter-departmental ministerial group on biodiversity (IDMGB) on 11 May 2009 was the final meeting of Ministers from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Department for International Development and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and led to agreement of the Government's Strategy for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity in the UK Overseas Territories. The Strategy was approved by ministerial correspondence between the three Departments in July.
Among other things, the Strategy establishes an official-level group comprising the three departments mentioned above, and additional Government and non-government organisations as necessary. The first meeting of this group took place on 29 September.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions he has had with waste authorities on the creation of further joint waste authorities. [290433]
Dan Norris: No joint waste authorities have yet been established, though several groups of authorities are exploring the creation of advanced waste partnerships in their areas. DEFRA Ministers have had no discussions with waste authorities on this subject.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what recent assessment he has made of progress towards meeting the 2010 targets for waste management set under EU Landfill Directive; and what recent steps his Department has taken to meet these targets; [291687]
(2) what progress has been made towards meeting the 2010 targets for waste management under the EU Landfill Directive; and what steps have been taken to meet these targets. [292150]
Dan Norris: England is making good progress towards meeting its share of the UK’s landfill diversion targets for biodegradable municipal waste set in the EU landfill directive. Overall considerable progress has been made in recent years and England sent less to landfill in 2007-08 than its 2010 target.
The devolved Administrations are responsible for delivering their proportion of the UK targets, and are best placed to make assessments of progress made in their respective areas.
The targets to reduce biodegradable municipal waste to landfill have required local authorities to find more sustainable ways to deal with the waste they collect. They have made substantial progress and should be congratulated on their efforts. DEFRA continues to offer advice and support to their efforts, including providing £2.5 billion in PFI credits to date to promote the procurement of waste treatment infrastructure.
Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many seizures of illegal meat imports there were in each of the last five years. [291908]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The following table shows the number of seizures of illegal meat imports in each of the last five years.
These figures include the number and weight of seizures made from non-European Union (EU) countries by the United Kingdom Border Agency at points of entry in Great Britain, those made by inland local/port health authorities where they were able to establish that the illegal products came from non-EU countries and those made by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development for Northern Ireland (DARDNI) at points of entry in Northern Ireland.
| 1 April to 31 March each year | Number of seizures | Weight (kg) |
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the Minister of State will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire, dated 8 June 2009, on single supplements levied by hotels. [289867]
Dan Norris: I have not received a copy of the hon. Member’s letter. If the hon. Member would like to resend it, I shall be happy to deal with it.
Mr. Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will defer making regulations to implement the review of waste exemptions from environmental permitting until planning guidance relating to the metals recycling sector has been put in place. [291498]
Dan Norris: We will not defer making regulations to implement the review of waste exemptions from environmental permitting. We propose to lay regulations to come into force in April 2010 that will provide new and amended waste exemptions from the need for an environmental permit for a range of waste operations that pose a low environmental risk. Exemptions provide 'lighter touch' regulation and will encourage more businesses to take up waste recycling and recovery. At the same time, we will limit the extent of the exemptions for some higher risk waste operations that will in the future be subject to increased controls through an environmental permit.
The Government response to the consultation on the review of waste exemptions from environmental permitting, published on 11 September 2009, provides a commitment to work with industry and others to identify the scale of the potential impact on the metal recycling sector and we will take forward a range of measures to assist legitimate operators to establish their planning status for the purposes of obtaining an environmental permit. We are also proposing a three and a half year transitional period for existing metal recycling operators to obtain a permit where they will no longer benefit from an exemption.
Martin Salter: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding his Department has allocated to the targeted species recovery component of the new framework for delivering priority habitats and species in England launched by Natural England in November 2008. [290073]
Huw Irranca-Davies:
DEFRA, including its agencies, Natural England and the Environment Agency, allocated £2,170,000 in 2008-09 to the targeted recovery of species
afforded conservation priority in England by the new delivery framework. It is anticipated that £2,586,000 will be allocated in 2009-10.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to publish guidance to retailers on the labelling of products from Israeli settlements in the West Bank; and what organisations and individuals he has consulted on the matter in the last 12 months. [290359]
Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) if he will publish the voluntary guidelines issued to UK supermarkets in March 2009 on the labelling of goods produced in Israeli settlements in the West Bank occupied Palestinian Territories; [291561]
(2) when his Department plans to hold a consultation on the labelling of Israeli settlement goods. [291518]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Government have been exploring the possibility of improving the clarity of labelling of produce from the West Bank. Earlier this year, the Cabinet Office held a meeting with a group of interested parties to discuss the possibility of introducing some voluntary guidance, so that consumers could better understand which products came from occupied Palestinian territories. The Government are considering the next steps following that discussion.
Janet Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent representations he has received on the use of pesticides by local authorities. [291731]
Barbara Follett: I have been asked to reply.
The only representation received on the use of pesticides by local authorities was from the Pesticide Action Network UK. The correspondent was advised DEFRA has responsibility for such matters.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will take steps to reduce the number of pets abandoned by UK nationals emigrating from the UK. [291700]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The act of abandoning an animal is an example of failing to provide for its welfare needs and so is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. Punishment for such an offence is a fine of up to £5,000 or six months’ imprisonment, or both.
Neither enforcement agencies nor animal welfare charities have made us aware that there is a significant problem of animals being abandoned by people emigrating from this country.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to reduce the (a) use and (b) provision of plastic carrier bags. [289528]
Dan Norris: A voluntary agreement between the Government and Britain's leading supermarkets (represented by the British Retail Consortium (BRC)) aimed to cut the number of single -use carrier bags they provided by 50 per cent. by the end of May 2009, against 2006 levels.
The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) which has been monitoring the agreement, reported that retailers only narrowly missed the target, achieving a reduction of 48 per cent. across the UK. These are significant results achieved solely on a voluntary basis, and the Government, BRC and the retailers it represents are working to continue reducing the number of bags distributed with a shared goal for a long-term reduction of 70 per cent. As part of the agreement, the Government, the BRC and WRAP launched a publicity campaign earlier this year encouraging consumers to ‘Get A Bag Habit’—and remember to reuse their carrier bags when shopping.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many local authorities have (a) applied for and (b) obtained the private finance initiative credits announced in Budget 2009. [292149]
Dan Norris: Since 6 April 2009, of the waste projects included in the Budget and Comprehensive Spending Review there has been:
(a) One project consisting of three waste disposal authorities namely, Coventry City Council in partnership with Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council and Warwickshire County Council under the name “Project Transform”. This project received approval from HM Treasury's Project Review Group in May 2009.
(b) One project, Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority's waste Private Finance Initiative (PFI) awarded credits in April 2009 by DEFRA. The Authority submitted a claim form for PFI annuity grant (PFI Revenue Support payments) in August 2009.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what proportion of waste arising from each local authority area in the East of England was recycled in each of the last five years. [289397]
Dan Norris: The table shows the municipal recycling rate for all local authorities in the East of England for the financial years 2003-04 through to 2007-08. This includes waste sent for recycling, composting and reuse.
There are some data missing for 2004-05 due to WastedataFlow being introduced that year and about half of authorities not submitting data.
| Municipal recycling rate | |||||
| Percentage | |||||
| Authority | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 |
| Source: WasteDataFlow and DEFRA’s Municipal Waste Management Survey. | |||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 304W—continued
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what recent assessment he has made of the effect on animal welfare of the transfer of responsibility for stray dogs from local police forces to local authorities; and if he will make a statement; [290471]
(2) what recent assessment he has made of the effect on animal welfare of the transfer of responsibility for stray dogs from local police forces to local authorities; and if he will make a statement. [290470]
Jim Fitzpatrick: In April 2008 responsibility for dealing with stray dogs was removed from the police who had shared this role with local authorities. Sole responsibility now rests with local authorities, who already have arrangements in place to collect and house strays. An additional £4 million per year has been provided to local authorities to cover this additional responsibility.
No assessment has been made of the effects of this change in responsibility on animal welfare.
Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many people have been prosecuted under section 4 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in relation to the use of glue traps to date. [289938]
Jim Fitzpatrick: No records are held centrally on this.
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment he has made on the effectiveness of glue traps in pest control of their use by non-professionals. [292095]
Jim Fitzpatrick: DEFRA has not made any recent assessment of the effectiveness of glue traps in pest control when used by non-professionals.
Mr. Bailey:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will defer making regulations to implement the review of waste
exemptions from environmental permitting until the EU Waste Framework Directive has been transposed into UK law. [291499]
Dan Norris: We will not defer making regulations to implement the review of waste exemptions from environmental permitting. We propose to lay regulations to come into force in April 2010 that will provide new and amended waste exemptions from the need for an environmental permit for a range of waste operations that pose a low environmental risk. Exemptions provide 'lighter touch' regulation and will encourage more businesses to take up waste recycling and recovery. At the same time, we will limit the extent of the exemptions for some higher risk waste operations that will in the future be subject to increased controls through an environmental permit.
There is no reason to delay the benefits and savings that will result from the regulations until the revised EU Waste Framework Directive is transposed. The revised Directive contains similar provisions to the existing Directive, and gives member states discretion to provide exemptions from permitting subject to certain conditions.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will issue guidance to local authorities on the use of enforcement powers in relation to statutory nuisances caused by activities associated with waste management regulated by the Environment Agency. [290434]
Dan Norris: In April 2008, the Environmental Permitting Regulations 2007 came into force. The regulations replaced and brought together the previous waste management licensing and Pollution Prevention and Control (PPC) systems under one environmental permitting regime.
A consequence of this regulatory change is that local authorities now require the consent of the Secretary of State before instituting proceedings for statutory nuisances such as odour, noise, smoke, dust, artificial light and accumulations from a waste operation (i.e. a site regulated by the Environment Agency under an environmental permit or requiring registration as an exempt waste operation). Prior to April 2008, the Secretary of State’s consent was only required in respect of the PPC regime.
The changes to the statutory nuisance provisions were made to avoid an operator being subject to ‘double jeopardy’; i.e. to ensure a local authority may not begin summary proceedings against an operator for nuisance, where proceedings can be brought by the Environment Agency under the Environmental Permitting Regulations. DEFRA officials are currently working with relevant stakeholders (i.e. the Local Authorities Coordinators of Regulatory Services (LACORS) and the Environment Agency) on the provision of future supplementary guidance on the factors to be taken into consideration in dealing with applications for the Secretary of State’s consent.
Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) how many individuals have been (a) charged and (b) prosecuted for the illegal export of waste in each of the last five years; [289683]
(2) what the (a) number and (b) monetary value was of fines imposed for the illegal export of waste in each of the last five years. [289684]
Dan Norris: Since 2004, the Environment Agency has had 18 successful prosecutions for illegal waste shipments. Four of these have been individuals and 14 have been companies. One company has been prosecuted twice in the space of two years. One individual was given a conditional discharge, the rest have received fines totalling £224,650.
Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which countries have been in receipt of illegally exported waste of each type from the UK in each year since 1997. [289685]
Dan Norris: The Environment Agency has collected data on illegally exported waste from England and Wales since 2002. The countries that have been in receipt of illegally exported waste are as follows:
| Waste type | Destination | |
| (1) Waste intercepted in Belgium; intended final destination unknown. | ||
Containers of waste exported to Brazil in 2009 are the subject of an ongoing investigation by the Environment Agency.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of homes with water meters installed in each water supply area. [289274]
Huw Irranca-Davies: The table shows the percentage and number of households with a meter for each water company.
| 2008-09 | ||
| Percentage of households metered | Total number of household properties metered | |
| Source: Ofwat | ||
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to answer question 269529, on the inter-departmental committee on flooding, tabled on 2 April 2009. [292030]
Huw Irranca-Davies: Question 269529 was transferred to the Cabinet Office in April as it has responsibility for the inter-departmental committee on flooding.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what funding and support (a) the Government Office for the South East, (b) the South East England Regional Assembly and (c) the South East England Development Agency has provided to the Arc Manche network. [290419]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The funding that the Department has provided to the Arc Manche network is as follows:
(a) The Government office for the south east through the Interreg IIIB programme contributed £1.1 million ERDF to Arc Manche via the EMDI (Espace Manche Development Initiative) project;
(b) The South East England regional assembly did not contribute to the project; and
(c) The South East England Development Agency is aware of the Arc Manche Network but does not provide specific funding or support to it.
Mr. David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans he has to provide guidance on the use of energy-efficient circulator pumps in (a) domestic and (b) commercial properties. [291786]
Mr. Ian Austin: The recent consultation proposing changes to Part L of the Building Regulations included proposed standards and guidance for circulation pumps in both domestic and non-domestic buildings. The consultation responses are presently being analysed and they will help to inform the final amendment which is planned to be brought into operation in 2010.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress has been made on his Department's consideration of whether to restrict the scope of section 106 obligations after the Community Infrastructure Levy is introduced. [289708]
Mr. Ian Austin: The Government have set out proposals to reform the use of planning obligations in Chapter 5 of its consultation regarding the introduction of the Community Infrastructure Levy which was launched on 30 July 2009 and will conclude on 23 October 2009.
Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he plans to bring forward legislation for additional competent persons schemes in the current Session. [289552]
Mr. Ian Austin: The Building (Amendment No.2) Regulations 2009 (S.I. 2009/2397), which were laid before Parliament on 8 September 2009, have authorised competent person schemes for the installation of a wholesome cold water supply and for the installation of a supply of non-wholesome water to a sanitary convenience fitted with a flushing device. These schemes were authorised to support the changes made to Part G of the Building Regulations (sanitation, hot water safety and water efficiency) by the Building and Approved Inspectors (Amendment) Regulations 2009 (S.I. 2009/1219).
There are no plans to authorise further competent person schemes in the current Session.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 308W—continued
Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how long on average it took for a local authority to become an approved developer in the latest period for which figures are available. [289762]
John Healey: Under the local authority new build programme it has taken on average eight weeks for a local authority to become a pre-qualified partner. The pre-qualified partner status allows an organisation to bid for investment funding from the Homes and Communities Agency.
The first bid round for the programme opened for four weeks, closing on 31 July 2009. I launched a second bid round on 28 September 2009. From the opening of the bid round local authorities were invited to complete their pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ) and the agency commits to giving the local authority a decision on assessment within eight weeks of receipt.
For the bid round 1 all PQQs received from local authorities have been assessed within that time frame.
Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which local authorities have built housing for rent in each of the last 10 years. [289761]
Mr. Ian Austin: Figures showing total local authority new build completions by local authority to 2007-08 were released in Live Table 253 on the CLG website in October 2008. These include total house building completions by tenure, including local authority completions:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/xls/140921.xls
Some of these completions could be provided for low cost home ownership rather than social rent, but a breakdown of these figures is not available centrally.
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to chapter 2, paragraph 52, of Building Britain’s Future, Cm 7654, when he expects construction to start on the council built and owned social rental homes; and what the proposed locations of the new homes are. [290366]
John Healey: 49 local authorities have now made successful applications to the Homes and Communities Agency for grant funding to build new council homes. Construction is expected on the first sites before the end of this year. A table giving the locations and numbers of the new homes has been placed in the Library of the House.
I launched a second bidding round on 28 September 2009. I am to announce successful schemes in December.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which local authorities have no housing debt. [289543]
Mr. Ian Austin: Local authorities manage their debt as a whole and no separate record is kept of debts taken out for Housing Revenue Account (HRA) purposes. The calculations for local authorities' annual HRA subsidy entitlements use a notional measure of HRA debt known as the Subsidy Capital Financing Requirement (SCFR). The SCFR calculates the HRA's share of debt financing costs, or if it is assumed there is no debt, interest earned on investments.
The following list gives the stock-owning authorities with a negative SCFR.
Barking and Dagenham
Cheltenham
Dacorum
Dartford
Epping Forest
Exeter
Gosport
Harlow
Redditch
South Bedfordshire
South Cambridgeshire
Stevenage
Welwyn Hatfield
Wycombe
(1) As in the Housing Revenue Account subsidy determination 2009-10
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans he has to revise the guidance provided by his Department to tenants on large-scale voluntary transfer ballots following the introduction of self-financing of housing revenue accounts. [291462]
Mr. Ian Austin: The Department has no plans to revise the guidance to tenants on large-scale voluntary transfer ballots following the introduction of self-financing of housing revenue accounts.
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many council tenants there have been in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England in each year since 1997. [291539]
Mr. Ian Austin: Information is available on the number of dwellings rather than tenants. Local authorities in England report information for numbers of local authority owned (council) dwellings as at 1 April in their annual Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix (HSSA) returns. This information is published on the Communities and Local Government website in Table 116:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/xls/140882.xls
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much his Department spent on newspaper advertising carried in each newspaper in the most recent year for which figures are available. [289508]
Barbara Follett: The Department publishes details of expenditure on public information campaigns in its annual reports, which includes information on press advertising activity.
The total amount for press advertising in 2008-09 is already in the public domain on the Department's website at:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/corporate/pdf/1298507.pdf
During this period the Department advertised in all major national newspapers and a broad, representative selection of regional and local newspapers.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what IT systems have been in development for use within his Department in the last five years; what the reason for the development of each system was; how much has been spent on the development of each system; and which systems have been subsequently (a) implemented, (b) terminated prior to implementation and (c) terminated following implementation. [290578]
Barbara Follett:
IT Systems developed specifically for use in Communities and Local Government in the last
five years are set out in the following table. None of such systems were terminated prior to implementation.
| System | Reason for development | Development cost (£000) | Implemented | Terminated following implementation |
|
Data Interchange Hub—Government Office National Indicator Tool | ||||
|
TESA (Transactional ERDF and State Aid) system was developed to manage the 2000-06 ERDF Programme. | ||||
|
MCIS (Management Control Information System) was developed to manage the 2007-13 ERDF Programme. | ||||
| (1) Costs for enhancement. | ||||
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many properties owned by the Department were liable for payment of (a) business rates and (b) empty property rates in each of the last five years; and what the bill for each was in each such year. [290584]
Barbara Follett: The Department for Communities and Local Government are liable for business rates on the following freehold property:
| Fire Experimental Unit, Moreton in Marsh, Gloucestershire | ||
| £ | ||
| Business rates | Empty rates | |
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many staff took paternity leave from his Department in each of the last five years; and what the average length of such leave has been. [290582]
Barbara Follett: The Department for Communities and Local Government provides fathers or the mother's husband/civil partner/partner (including unmarried couples and same sex partners) with 10 days paid Maternity Support Leave for each child born. This leave is approved and recorded by individual line managers but no central record is maintained. As a consequence there would be a disproportionate cost in collecting and reporting this information.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to page 25 of his Department’s Resource Accounts 2008-09, HC 449, for what reasons the salary ranges relating to Director-General (a) Mike Falvey and (b) Joe Montgomery were increased by £20,000 in 2008-09. [290660]
Mr. Malik [holding answer 9 September 2009]: In the Department’s Resource Accounts, the salaries paid to Board members are identified in bands of £5,000. Details are provided for the period covered by the Resource Accounts and for the previous financial year.
In the financial year 2008-09, the salary paid to Director-General Joe Montgomery increased as a result of payment of a non-consolidated sum, under the annual pay arrangements for senior civil servants, together with repositioning of his base salary to reflect an increase in responsibility. With these increases, the total paid in salary to Joe Montgomery in 2008-09 exceeded the previous threshold for the band in which his income had been reported in 2007-08.
The salary paid to Director-General Mike Falvey increased as a result of payment of a non-consolidated sum that formed part of the contractual arrangements
agreed at the time of his appointment. With this increase, the total paid in salary to Mike Falvey in 2008-09 exceeded the previous threshold for the band in which his income had been reported in 2007-08.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of his Department’s waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289662]
Barbara Follett: In 2008-09, the Department for Communities and Local Government’s recycling rate was 58 per cent.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 313W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many sick days were taken by staff of his Department in each of the last five years; and what the cost to the public purse was of such absences in each such year. [290579]
Barbara Follett: Information on sickness absences and costs for 2004, 2005, 2006-07 for the Department for Communities and Local Government is published by the Cabinet Office on the civil service website:
http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/who/statistics/sickness.aspx
Data for 2007-08 and 2008-09 are not yet available but will be published later in the year. For years prior to 2003 data are not held electronically and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the average length of employment of staff of his Department at each Civil Service payband. [290580]
Barbara Follett: The Department for Communities and Local Government came into existence on 5 May 2006 replacing the former Office for the Deputy Prime Minister. The average (median) years in post, by grade level, for staff in Communities and Local Government as at end of March 2009 is set out in the following table:
| Average years (median) | |
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance has been issued by his Department and its agencies on the siting of household waste collection facilities in new dwellings. [289548]
Mr. Ian Austin: The Government provide a requirement and guidance for the provision of and access to storage for solid waste, such as waste bins, in Part H6 of Schedule 1 of the Building Regulations 2000, and in Category 5—Waste, of the Code for Sustainable Homes (the Code.)
The guidance in the Building Regulations sets out that the requirement in Part H6 will be met if the solid waste storage is:
designed and sited so as not to be prejudicial to health;
of sufficient area having regard to the requirements of the waste collection authority for the number and size of receptacles under Sections 46 and 47 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990;
sited so as to be accessible for use by people in the building and of ready access for removal to the collection point specified by the waste collection authority under Sections 4 and 47 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
The Code is the voluntary national standard for the design and construction of sustainable new homes. To obtain a Code certificate there are certain minimum standards that must be observed which include the storage of household waste. These standards are based on British Standard 5906 (100 litres for the first bedroom and then a further 70 litres for each additional bedroom) and will be met if:
space is provided for storage of containers for separated waste, with a combined capacity of 0.25m(3) or in agreement with the waste collection authority;
all the containers are accessible to disabled people.
The Code also provides credits for the provision of dedicated storage for recyclable household waste and for composting.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether any advice or guidance has been given to local authorities on the use of wheeled refuse containers in conservation areas. [290463]
Mr. Ian Austin: Further to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Member for Wansdyke (Dan Norris) to the hon. Member for Peterborough (Mr. Jackson) on 13 July 2009, Official Report, column 10W, no advice or guidance has been given to local authorities on the use of wheeled refuse containers in conservation areas.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department or its agencies have (a) funded or (b) supported the production of guidance on the use of (i) alternate weekly collections and (ii) charges for the collection of household waste in eco-town developments. [290466]
John Healey: Neither the Department nor its agencies have funded or supported specific guidance on either alternate weekly collections or charges for the collection of household waste in eco-towns. In “Planning Policy Statement: Eco-towns” (PPS), which we published on 16 July 2009, we set out the standards that eco-towns will have to meet, including standards for waste. Copies of the PPS are available in the House Library.
Also as part of their work with us on eco-towns, the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) have produced a series of best practice guidance worksheets
to support those taking forward eco-towns, including one on waste management, and these are available on the TCPA’s website at:
http://www.tcpa.org.uk/pages/sustainability-worksheets.html
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) how many empty dwelling management orders have been made in each local authority area since the introduction of such orders; [291578]
(2) how many empty properties have been returned to use through an empty dwelling management order in each local authority area since the introduction of such orders. [291579]
Mr. Ian Austin: To date, 27 Interim Empty Dwelling Management Orders (EDMOs) have been approved by the Residential Property Tribunal Service (RPTS) since the legislation came into effect in April 2006. However, local authorities claim that in many cases the threat of an EDMO has been sufficient to make owners take action to bring long-term empty homes back into use.
We do not hold information on the number of properties returned to use through an EDMO, however, we are confident that the legislation is beginning to work well. We always intended that the legislation should be used only as a last resort where other measures have proved unsuccessful. We want to encourage voluntary re-occupation of empty homes but this can only work well where there is realistic compulsion to back them up. EDMOs provide this compulsion and should therefore be a key component of a comprehensive empty property strategy.
| Local authority | Number of interim EDMOs authorised |
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he plans to extend requirements for energy performance certificates to existing housing stock which is not brought to market. [289806]
John Healey: We have no current plans to extend requirements for Energy Performance Certificates to existing housing stock which is not being brought to market.
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the training facilities at the Fire Service College will be made available to train private sector contractors who would provide contingency fire cover in the event of industrial action by fire brigades. [291068]
Mr. Malik [holding answer 14 September 2009]: The Fire Service College provides training and training facilities, on a commercial basis, for fire and rescue services, the wider public sector and the private sector.
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what contingency fire cover arrangements, other than the use of retained fire fighters, there are in the event of a (a) local and (b) national firefighters’ strike. [291115]
Mr. Malik [holding answer 14 September 2009]: The provision of emergency fire cover during local and national strikes is the statutory responsibility of fire and rescue authorities. Past experience has shown that fire and rescue authorities utilise a range of personnel to provide emergency fire cover, including officers and whole time duty system firefighters who are not in the union which is in dispute. In London, the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority have entered into a contract with AssetCo plc, for the provision of an Emergency Fire Crew Capability Service to the London Fire Brigade.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the salary is of the (a) chair and (b) vice chair of each fire authority in England. [291981]
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 3 July 2009, Official Report, column 454W, on fire services: Greater London, for what reasons (a) staff in the London regional control centre will be eligible and (b) staff in other new fire control rooms will not be eligible for the Fire Brigade’s Long Service and Good Conduct Medal. [291069]
Mr. Malik [holding answer 14 September 2009]: Only staff employed by a Fire Brigade are eligible for the Fire Brigade’s Long Service and Good Conduct Medal. Staff employed in the London Regional Control Centre are eligible for the medal as they continue to be employed by the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority. Staff in the other Regional Control Centres, which are controlled by local authority owned companies, will not be in Fire Brigade employment and will therefore not be eligible for the medal under the terms of the Royal Warrant.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the (a) salary and (b) non-salary administration budget of the Government Office for London is for 2009-10; how many members of staff the Office has in 2009-10; and what the Office's budget for each of its programmes is in 2009-10. [289820]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The 2009-10 administrative budget for Government office for London (GOL) is:
| £ | |
The gross accommodation budget for GOL for 2009-10 is £4,592,154 and related tariff/minor occupier income of £753,900. The net accommodation budget is £3,838,254.
GOL staff in post as at the end of August 2009 = 204.
| 2009-10 programme budgets | |||
| Block | Department | Programme | Amount (£) |
| Blocks: A—Programmes directly allocated/delegated to GOL B—Grants to GLA C—Programmes without delegation but GOL delivery/management responsibility | |||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 318W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much each regional Government Office spent on (a) car hire, (b) train travel, (c) air travel, ( d) hotels and (e) restaurant meals in each of the last five years. [289821]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Government office expenditure is set out as follows:
| (a) Car hire | |||||
| £ | |||||
| GO | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
| (b) Train travel | |||||
| £ | |||||
| GO | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
| (c) Air travel | |||||
| £ | |||||
| GO | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
| (d)/(e) Hotels/restaurant meals | |||||
| £ | |||||
| GO | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
The information is taken from the central accounting system and this does not provide a detailed break down of T and S claims made by GO staff, thus the costs of hotels and restaurant meals are not individually identified.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what hospitality has been received by senior officers in each of the Government Offices for the Regions in the last 12 months. [291475]
Ms Rosie Winterton: I am placing in the Library a table of the gifts and hospitality for senior officers in the Government offices for the last 12 months.
In accordance with the requirements of the Civil Service Code and the Civil Service Management Code, civil servants declare any hospitality received.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what salary grades staff in each Government Office are employed upon. [291795]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The current pay ranges for staff employed in the Government Offices with effect from 1 August 2009 are as follows:
12 Oct 2009 : Column 319W—continued
| £ | ||
| Grade | Minimum | Maximum |
The London rates are paid to staff working in the Government Office for London; the Outer London rates to staff working in the Government Office for the South East; and National rates to staff working in the other seven Government Offices. There is no difference in the pay rates for SCS Pay Bands 1, 1A and 2 in different parts of the country. Staff can be paid a salary anywhere between the minimum and maximum.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the budget of the Government Offices Network Centre and Services is for 2009-10. [289465]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The budget for the pay and non-pay costs of the Government Office Network Centre and Services for 2009-10 is £5,732,470.
The Government Office NCS also manages central budgets for the Government Office Network, including ICT and property, totalling £32,670,930 for 2009-10.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 321W—continued
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people have been accepted as homeless in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England in each year since 1997. [291540]
Mr. Ian Austin:
Information about English local housing authorities' actions under the homelessness legislation (Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996) is collected at local authority level, and published by the Department in the
quarterly Statistical Release on Statutory Homelessness, available both in the Library and via the CLG website:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/statistics/homelessnessq22009
Data collected includes the number of households accepted by local housing authorities as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need, and therefore owed a main homelessness duty (to secure that suitable accommodation is available). The regional and national figures for the number of applicants accepted as owed a main duty, for each financial year since 1998-99 can be found in Table 3 of this Statistical Release, and an extract which includes the 1997-98 figures for England and the North East is provided in the following table.
| Households accepted as owed a main homelessness duty, England and the North East, 1997-98 to 2008-09 | ||
| England | North East | |
For local authority level acceptance figures between 1997-98 and 2008-09, including those for South Tyneside, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Castle Point (Bob Spink) on 23 June 2009, Official Report, column 843W.
We do not centrally hold figures below local authority level.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government in which month the second round of Housing and Planning Delivery Grant will be paid to local authorities; and what period of time will be used as the basis for assessing whether grant targets have been met. [290475]
John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Meriden (Mrs. Spelman) on 1 September 2009, Official Report, column 1838W.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he plans to announce the outcomes of his review of the Housing Revenue Account. [291670]
Mr. Ian Austin: On 30 June 2009, Official Report, columns 7-10WS, my right hon. Friend the Minister for Housing announced his intention to replace the Housing Revenue Account subsidy system with a devolved system of responsibility and funding for council housing. He published a consultation paper setting out his proposals on 21 July. The consultation closes on Tuesday 27 October.
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the regulatory and environmental benefits of establishing a competent person scheme for roofing work. [289997]
Mr. Ian Austin: The Department has been discussing with interested parties the possibility of establishing a competent person scheme for roof work. Before any scheme could be authorised, the regulatory and environmental benefits in doing so would need to be fully assessed. Any applicant for a scheme for roof work would need to demonstrate competence to meet all the environmental requirements in the building regulations.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) how many affordable homes have been built in (a) North West Cambridgeshire, (b) Cambridgeshire, (c) Peterborough, (d) Huntingdonshire and (e) England in each of the last five years; [291478]
(2) how many homes for social rent have been built in (a) North West Cambridgeshire, (b) Cambridgeshire, (c) Huntingdonshire, (d) Peterborough and (e) England in each of the last five years. [291479]
Mr. Ian Austin: Information on new homes built for social rent and affordable housing is not available by constituency.
The following table shows the number of new affordable homes (social rent, intermediate rent and low cost home ownership) built in Cambridge local authority, Huntingdon local authority, Peterborough unitary authority, Cambridgeshire county and England in each of the last five years.
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | |
| Note: Figures are estimates, and have been rounded to the nearest 10. | |||||
The following table shows the number of new social rented homes (excluding intermediate rent and low cost home ownership) built in Cambridge local authority, Huntingdon local authority, Peterborough unitary authority, Cambridgeshire county and England in each of the last five years.
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | |
| Note: Figures are estimates, and have been rounded to the nearest 10. Source: Homes and Communities Agency Investment Management System (IMS), and local authority returns to CLG. Figures have been rounded to nearest 10 units. | |||||
Not all social rented and affordable housing is provided by new build completions, as some supply can come from acquisitions. For example, in 2007-08, a total of 270 additional affordable homes were provided in Cambridge (new build and acquisitions), 90 in Huntingdon, 310 in Peterborough, 990 in Cambridgeshire, and 53,730 additional affordable homes were provided in England (new build and acquisitions).
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) how many affordable homes have been built in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England in each year since 1997; [291541]
(2) how many homes for social rent have been built in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England in each year since 1997. [291542]
Mr. Ian Austin: Information on new homes built for social rent and affordable housing is not available by constituency.
The following table shows the number of new affordable homes (social rent, intermediate rent and low cost home ownership) built in South Tyneside local authority, the North East Region, and England in each of the last five years.
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | |
| Note: Figures are estimates, and have been rounded to the nearest 10. | |||||
The following table shows the number of new social rented homes (excluding intermediate rent and low cost home ownership) built in South Tyneside local authority, the North East Region, and England in each of the last five years.
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | |
| Note: Figures are estimates, and have been rounded to the nearest 10. Source: Homes and Communities Agency Investment Management System (IMS), and local authority returns to CLG. Figures have been rounded to nearest 10 units. | |||||
Not all social rented and affordable housing is provided by new build completions, as some supply can come from acquisitions. For example, in 2007-08, a total of 80 additional affordable homes were provided in South Tyneside (new build and acquisitions), 960 in the North East Region, and 53,730 additional affordable homes were provided in England (new build and acquisitions).
Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many affordable homes were built in each of the six Gloucestershire districts in each year since 2003. [291560]
Mr. Ian Austin: The following table shows the number of new affordable homes (social rent, intermediate rent and low cost home ownership) built in each local authority in Gloucestershire in each of the last five years.
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | |
| Note: Figures are estimates, and have been rounded to the nearest 10. | |||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 325W—continued
Not all affordable housing is provided by new build completions, as some supply can come from acquisitions. For example, in 2007-08, a total of 210 additional affordable homes were provided in Gloucester (new build and acquisitions), 150 in Tewkesbury, 120 in Cheltenham, 10 in Cotswold, 100 in Stroud, and 100 additional affordable homes were provided in Forest of Dean (new build and acquisitions).
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to encourage self-build housebuilders. [292296]
John Healey: The Government recognise the need to promote a diverse range of housing suppliers to achieve its housing ambitions. This includes, where appropriate, self builders who make an important contribution towards the meeting the demand for new homes.
The Government are doing further work identify additional opportunities to promote a strong and diverse house-building sector. We will report on progress with this work alongside the 2009 pre-Budget Report in the autumn.
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many self-built homes were completed in each region in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [292298]
John Healey: This information is not held centrally.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government in which Homebuy schemes Northern Rock participates. [289536]
John Healey: Participation in homebuy schemes is a commercial decision for lenders. Currently, 18 lenders are willing to offer mortgages under shared ownership schemes, such as new build homebuy, and five lenders support HomeBuy Direct. Northern Rock is not one of these participants.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate has been made of the number of affordable housing units provided in (a) whole and (b) part through Section 106 agreements in the last three years. [289544]
Mr. Ian Austin: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Grant Shapps) on 30 March 2009, Official Report, columns 974-75W.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the monetary value of developers' contributions under Section 106 agreements in each year since 1997; and what changes have been made to the criteria used to determine the level of such contributions since 1997. [289728]
Mr. Ian Austin: Detailed information on the value and nature of section 106 contributions are not held centrally. The Government have conducted a survey of the use and value of planning obligations among English local authorities for the years 2003-04 and 2005-06. These research reports are published on the Communities and Local Government website.
This research estimates that the total value of planning obligations agreed in England has increased from £1.9 billion in 2003-04 to £4 billion in 2005-06. Figures for 2005-06 show that of the total value of planning obligations made in that year, the majority of contributions were made towards affordable housing (50 per cent.), followed by the provision of land (24 per cent.), transport and travel (9 per cent.), open space and the environment (5 per cent.), education (4 per cent.), community works and leisure (2 per cent.), and other contributions (6 per cent.).
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) whether MyChoice Homebuy is included in the proposed closure of Open Market Homebuy; [290465]
(2) for what reasons he is closing the Open Market Homebuy scheme; and what his plans are for the future of the Homebuy Direct scheme. [289547]
John Healey: As I outlined in my written statement to the House on 30 June 2009, Official Report, columns 7-10WS, we are closing the Open Market HomeBuy scheme, including MyChoice HomeBuy, in order to maximise our efforts behind the building of new affordable homes. As well as helping first time buyers this increases the supply of houses and creates jobs.
HomeBuy Direct is a partnership between Government and housebuilders that is giving thousands of first-time buyers the chance to step onto the property ladder, while at the same time stimulating construction activity and retaining capacity in the housebuilding industry to respond when the market recovers.
Housebuilders are able to bid for funding for more HomeBuy Direct schemes through the Kickstart programme.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many properties have been sold under the Home Buy Direct scheme in each local authority area in England since the scheme's introduction. [291484]
John Healey: Provisional estimates for completed sales under the HomeBuy Direct scheme by local authority area, to the end of August 2009, are set out in the following table:
| Local authority | Number |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 329W—continued
Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much was spent by the Homes and Communities Agency on the Affordable Housing Programme in each county in 2008-09. [291716]
John Healey: I have placed information on the Homes and Communities Agency's Affordable Housing Programme expenditure in 2008-09 in each local authority area in the Library of the House.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many homes have been bought through the National Clearing House scheme in each local authority area in the North West region since the scheme's inception. [289295]
Mr. Ian Austin: The following table shows the number of new homes purchased from house builders by housing associations in each local authority area in the north west region through the Homes and Communities Agency's Affordable Housing Programme in 2008-09.
| Purchase of unsold developer stock in North West region | Total units |
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent estimate he has made of the number of houses with a standard assessment procedure rating of (a) below 10, (b) between 10 and 19, (c) between 20 and 29, (d) between 30 and 34, (e) between 35 and 39, (f) between 40 and 44, (g) between 45 and 49, (h) between 50 and 54, (i) between 55 and 59, (j) between 60 and 64, (k) between 65 and 69, (l) between 70 and 79, (m) between 80 and 89 and (n) between 90 and 99 (i) in each lower layer super output area, (ii) in each parliamentary constituency and (iii) occupied by a household with an income (A) above and (B) below 60 per cent. of median income measured (1) before and (2) after housing costs. [289445]
John Healey: The information is not collected in a way that allows it to be broken down in the manner requested. Information about the number of dwellings in England and Wales for which Energy Performance Certificates generated using the Standard Assessment Procedure is available from the Domestic Energy Performance Certificate Register at
https://www.epcregister.com/lodgementStats.html
Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many properties in (a) the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead and (b) Bracknell Forest District are recorded with each individual (i) dwellinghouse code and (ii) value significant code, including each individual (A) type, (B) room number, (C) bedroom, (D) bathroom, (E) floors, (F) floor level, (G) parking, (H) garaging, (I) conservatory type, (J) age, (K) outbuilding and (L) modernisation codes according to electronic records held by the Valuation Office Agency. [292055]
Mr. Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many properties in the Sevenoaks district are recorded with each individual (a) dwellinghouse code and (b) value significant code including each individual (i) type, (ii) room number, (iii) bedroom, (iv) bathroom, (v) floors, (vi) floor level, (vii) parking, (viii) garaging, (ix) conservatory type, (x) age, (xi) outbuilding and (xii) modernisation code according to Valuation Office Agency electronic records. [292087]
Mr. Hands:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answers to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 9 September 2009, Official Report, columns 1924-7W, to the hon. Member for Ludlow of 14 September 2009, Official Report, columns 2131-2W, and to the hon. Member for Meriden of 16 September 2009, Official Report, columns 2212-4W, on housing: valuation, how many properties are recorded within each category of (a) dwellinghouse code and (b) value significant code, including of each individual (i) type, (ii) room number, (iii) bathrooms, (iv) floors, (v) floor level, (vi) parking, (vii) garaging, (viii) conservatory type, (ix) age, (x) outbuilding and (xi) modernisation
code in the local authority area of Hammersmith and Fulham constituency according to electronic records held by the Valuation Office Agency. [292293]
Mr. Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many properties in the Gravesham local authority area are recorded with each individual (a) dwellinghouse code and (b) value significant code including each individual (i) type, (ii) room number, (iii) bedroom, (iv) bathroom, (v) floors, (vi) floor level, (vii) parking, (viii) garaging, (ix) conservatory type, (x) age, (xi) outbuilding and (xii) modernisation code according to electronic records held by the Valuation Office Agency. [292086]
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 16 September 2009, Official Report, column 2215W, on housing: valuation, how many properties in Welwyn Hatfield local authority area are recorded with each (a) individual type, (b) room number, (c) bedroom, (d) bathroom, (e) floor, (f) floor level, (g) parking, (h) garaging, (i) conservatory type, (j) age, (k) outbuilding and (l) modernisation code. [292534]
Angela Watkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answers to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 9 September 2009, Official Report, columns 1924-7W, to the hon. Member for Ludlow of 14 September 2009, Official Report, columns 2131-3W, and to the hon. Member for Meriden of 16 September 2009, Official Report, columns 2212-4W, on housing: valuation, how many properties are recorded with each individual (a) dwellinghouse code and (b) value significant code, including of each individual (i) type, (ii) number of rooms, (iii) number of bedrooms, (iv) number of bathrooms, (v) floors, (vi) floor level, (vii) parking, (viii) garaging, (ix) conservatory type, (x) age, (xi) outbuilding and (xii) modernisation code, in the local authority area of the London Borough of Havering according to electronic records held by the Valuation Office Agency. [292338]
Mr. Wilshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answers to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 9 September 2009, Official Report, columns 1924-7W, to the hon. Member for Ludlow of 14 September 2009, Official Report, columns 2131-2W, and to the hon. Member for Meriden of 16 September 2009, Official Report, columns 2212-4W, on housing: valuation, how many properties are recorded with each individual (a) dwellinghouse code and (b) value significant code, including each individual (i) type, (ii) number of rooms, (iii) number of bedrooms, (iv) number of bathrooms, (v) floors, (vi) floor level, (vii) parking, (viii) garaging, (ix) conservatory type, (x) age, (xi) outbuilding and (xii) modernisation code in the local authority area of Spelthorne, according to electronic records held by the Valuation Office Agency. [292391]
Barbara Follett: The number of properties with each individual dwellinghouse code and each value significant code, for the local authority areas requested, has been deposited in the Library.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on what date the Infrastructure Planning Commission will begin to undertake its statutory duties. [289540]
John Healey: The Infrastructure Planning Commission began to undertake its statutory duties from 1 October 2009. From this date, it started providing advice and guidance on preparing applications, and on how the new regime will work.
From 1 March 2010, the IPC will begin accepting applications for development consent from the Energy and Transport sectors, for the Waste Water and Hazardous Waste sectors in April 2011, and the Water Supply sector in April 2012.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many planning applications have been submitted to the Infrastructure Planning Commission. [289542]
John Healey: None. As set out in my statement in July 2009, our intention is for the IPC to begin accepting applications for development consent from the energy and transport sectors from 1 March 2010, for the waste water and hazardous waste sectors in April 2011, and the water supply sector in April 2012.
From 1 October 2009, the IPC began providing advice and guidance on preparing applications, and on how the new regime will work.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what notice period has been specified in the contracts for the commissioners of the Infrastructure Planning Commission. [289750]
John Healey: The contracts for the commissioners of the Infrastructure Planning Commission specify that the appointment can be terminated by either party, by giving three months’ notice in writing. It also stipulates that the Secretary of State may remove a person from office as the chair, or as deputy or other Commissioner, if the Secretary of State is satisfied that:
(a) the person is unable or unwilling to perform the duties of the office;
(b) the person has been convicted of a criminal offence; or
(c) the person is otherwise unfit to perform the duties of the office.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance has been given to (a) local planning authorities and (b) regional planning bodies on undertaking employment land reviews. [289537]
Mr. Ian Austin: We published ‘Employment Land Reviews: Guidance Note’ in December 2004. This guidance note seeks to help local planning authorities and regional planning bodies in assessing the demand for, and supply of employment land.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the policy is of (a) his Department and (b) the Audit Commission on encouraging local authorities to increase revenue from fees and charges. [290468]
Barbara Follett: Decisions on those fees and charges where local authorities are responsible for determining the level, are a matter for individual councils.
The Audit Commission's views on local authorities' policy on fees and charges is set out in its report ‘Positively Charged’, published in January 2008, which can be found at
http://www.audit-commission.gov.uk/nationalstudies/localgov/Pages/positivelycharged.aspx
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which local authorities have made their chief executive redundant as a result of local government reorganisation in the last five years; what severance pay was awarded in each case; and which of them have subsequently taken up employment in another local authority. [291727]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The establishment of nine new unitary councils on 1 April 2009 involves 44 chief executives leaving office through resignation, redundancy or retirement as decided locally and on which information is not held centrally.
These changes are part of the wider restructuring process which has led to a reduction of 330 senior management posts saving £23 million per annum. Under the Government's criteria for restructuring, any costs of transition, including redundancy costs, are met by savings or reserves and are not a call on the council tax.
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people local authorities serving Kirklees employed in (a) 1997 and (b) 2008. [291799]
Barbara Follett: The Department does not hold records of the number of people employed by individual local authorities. The Office for National Statistics collects employment statistics for the public sector including local authorities in England and Wales as part of the Quarterly Public Sector Employment Survey. Data from this survey have been published with written permission from all local authorities by the Local Government Association on their website and are available at:
http://www.lga.gov.uk/lga/core/page.do?pageId=1955843
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance his Department issues to local authorities on the receipt of hospitality by local authority staff involved in planning matters; and what records his Department holds on the receipt of such hospitality. [291728]
Mr. Ian Austin: While the Department issues guidance for councillors’ conduct it has not issued any guidance for local authority employees. Local authority employees’ behaviour regarding the receipt of hospitality would be determined by their terms and conditions of employment. In addition, the employing authority may have a code of conduct for employees addressing this issue. Consequently, the Department holds no records on the receipt of such hospitality. The Local Government Association has issued guidance in “Probity in Planning: The Role of Councillors and Officers—Revised Guidance Note on Good Planning Practice for Councillors and Officers Dealing With Planning Matters”. This can be viewed at:
http://www.lga.gov.uk/lga/aio/1940404
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what staff in which local authorities received a remuneration package in excess of £100,000 in 2008-09; and what their job title was in each case. [291729]
Barbara Follett: The information requested is not held centrally.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of local authority employees who received more than £64,000 in salary in the latest year for which figures are available. [292001]
Barbara Follett: The information requested is not held centrally.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 334W—continued
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department plans to amend Local Government Pension Scheme regulations to remove the requirement to fully fund all promised pension benefits. [290423]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The pension entitlements of members of the Local Government Pension Scheme are guaranteed under the scheme's provisions. There are no plans to change that position nor the current solvency requirement in the regulations.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the implications of the High Court judicial review judgement of Mr. Justice Foskett on the Boundary Committee and local government restructuring in Suffolk, with particular reference to the timetable for unitary restructuring in Suffolk, Norfolk and Devon. [289269]
Ms Rosie Winterton: This matter is currently before the Court of Appeal whose judgment we await. Any new date by which the Boundary Committee is to provide advice will be specified once it is clear when the appeal will be determined.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many households in Perth and North Perthshire constituency have applied for assistance under the Homeowners Mortgage Protection Scheme; and how many such applications have been (a) successful and (b) rejected. [289519]
John Healey: 1 refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Tatton (Mr. Osborne) on 16 September 2009, Official Report, column 2217W.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many households have received assistance under the Homeowners Mortgage Protection Scheme in (a) Glasgow Central, (b) Glasgow North, (c) Glasgow North East, (d) Glasgow South, (e) Glasgow South West and (f) Glasgow East to date. [289694]
John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 1 July 2009, Official Report, column 317W, to the hon. Member for Tamworth (Mr. Jenkins).
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many households in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire have taken up the Homeowners Mortgage Protection Scheme. [290306]
John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Tatton (Mr. Osborne) on 16 September 2009, Official Report, column 2217W.
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many households in Birmingham, Sparkbrook & Small Heath constituency have taken up the Homeowner Mortgage Protection Scheme. [291442]
John Healey: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 16 September 2009, Official Report, column 2217W, to the hon. Member for Tatton (Mr. Osborne).
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) how many completions he expects to be made in respect of applications from households in (a) Luton and (b) England for assistance in respect of the Mortgage Rescue Scheme in the next (i) three and (ii) six months; [291671]
(2) how many applications for assistance under the Mortgage Rescue Scheme from households in (a) Luton and (b) England were under consideration on the latest date for which figures are available; [291672]
(3) how many enquiries his Department has received on assistance under the Mortgage Rescue Scheme from households in (a) Luton and (b) England; and if he will make a statement. [291673]
John Healey: We have acted rapidly to put in place a range of help and support for households struggling with their mortgage at every stage, and launched a campaign to ensure households have clear information about the help available.
The Mortgage Rescue Scheme offers targeted support for the most vulnerable households who would receive
statutory homelessness assistance if repossessed. The scheme aims to support up to 6,000 vulnerable households over two years, depending on the extent of demand.
As part of the monitoring arrangements for the scheme, headline data up to the end of June 2009, provided by local authorities operating the scheme and broken down by Government office region, are available on the Department's website. The figures can be assessed using the following link:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/statistics/mortgagerescuestatistics
I have placed a copy of the figures reported by local authorities to June 2009 in the Library of the House.
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many individuals have (a) applied for and (b) received assistance under the Mortgage Rescue Scheme since its inception. [291813]
John Healey: We have acted rapidly to put in place a range of help and support for households struggling with their mortgage at every stage, and launched a campaign to ensure households have clear information about the help available.
The Mortgage Rescue Scheme offers targeted support for the most vulnerable households who would receive statutory homelessness assistance if repossessed. The scheme aims to support up to 6,000 vulnerable households over two years, depending on the extent of demand.
As part of the monitoring arrangements for the scheme, headline data for January-June 2009, provided by local authorities operating the scheme and broken down by Government office region, are available on the Department's website. The figures can be assessed using the following link:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/statistics/mortgagerescuestatistics
Figures reported by local authorities from January to June 2009 are provided in a table, which has been placed in the Library.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what requirements there are on local authorities to (a) publish and (b) release on request details of homes which are licensed under (i) mandatory and (ii) discretionary houses of multiple occupation licensing schemes. [289464]
Mr. Ian Austin: Section 232 of the Housing Act 2004 requires every local authority to establish and maintain a register of licences issued under mandatory HMO licensing and discretionary additional HMO licensing schemes. These registers are required to be made available for inspection by the public at all reasonable times.
Mike Penning:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many businesses have claimed (a) small business rate relief, (b) mandatory relief, (c) discretionary relief, (d) rural settlement relief and (e) hardship relief in (i) Hemel
Hempstead constituency, (ii) Dacorum, (iii) Hertfordshire and (iv) England in each of the last five years. [289424]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Details of the number of businesses claiming business rate reliefs as at 31 December 2007 and 31 December 2008 in the Dacorum council area, Hertfordshire and England are shown in the following tables.
| Number of hereditaments in receipt of business rate relief as at 31 December 2007 | |||
| Dacorum | Hertfordshire | England | |
| Number of hereditaments in receipt of business rate relief as at 31 December 2008 | |||
| Dacorum | Hertfordshire | England | |
Data for 2007 and 2008 are not strictly comparable as the rules governing empty property rate relief were changed by the Ratings (Empty Properties) Act 2007 and further subsequent changes.
Data for hardship relief and small business rate relief in these years are not available.
Data are not available at a constituency level and data for earlier years were not collected.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many (a) small and (b) large properties in each region will be subject to (i) an increase and (ii) a decrease in business rates of (A) zero, (B) one to five, (C) six to 10, (D) 11 to 15, (E) 16 to 20, (F) 21 to 30, (G) 31 to 40, (H) 41 to 50, (I) 51 to 100, (J) 101 to 200 and (K) over 200 per cent. before the application of transitional relief in 2010-11. [289906]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The following tables show the number of small and large properties by their percentage change in business rates before the application of transitional relief in 2010-11, grouped by Government office region.
A small property is defined as having a rateable value less than £18,000, or £25,500 in London. This is the definition proposed in the 2010 Transitional Relief consultation document published on 8 July 2009.
The analysis uses data from the Local List only; properties on the Central List are excluded.
| Small properties | |||||||||
| North East | North West | North Yorkshire and the Humber West | East Midlands | West Midlands | East of England | London | South East | South West | |
| (1) 344 properties see no change in their business rates bill. All these properties have zero Rateable Value before and after the revaluation. (2) Negligible (less than 50). Note: Figures rounded to the nearest hundred. | |||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 340W—continued
| Large properties | |||||||||
| North East | North West | North Yorkshire and the Humber West | East Midlands | West Midlands | East of England | London | South East | South West | |
| (1 )Negligible (less than 50). (2) 344 properties see no change in their business rates bill. All these properties have zero Rateable Value before and after the revaluation. Note: Figures rounded to the nearest hundred. | |||||||||
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will place in the Library a copy of the data on rateable values used as the basis of the statement on page 10 of his Department's consultation paper on transitional arrangements for the non-domestic rating revaluation 2010 in England that the 2010 revaluation will result in more ratepayers seeing reductions in bills (60 per cent. of ratepayers) than increases (40 per cent. of ratepayers). [289907]
Ms Rosie Winterton:
Before inflation, the 2010 business rates revaluation will reduce the rates bill for 1,028,500 properties and increase the rates bill for 677,800 properties.
After rounding, this represents 60 per cent. and 40 per cent. of properties respectively. These figures are based on the same ratings list as used for the consultation document “the transitional arrangements for the non-domestic rating revaluation 2010 in England” published on 8 July 2009. The ratings list is a live database and is continually being updated (to reflect appeals, deletions, additions, physical alterations, splits and mergers).
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate his Department has made of the total amount of business rates to be paid in respect of (a) properties and (b) large properties in each region in (i) 2009-10, (ii) 2010-11, (iii) 2011-12, (iv) 2013-14 and (v) 2014-15. [289908]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Details of the amount of National Non-Domestic Rates local authorities expect to collect in 2009-10 were published on 28 May in a Statistical Release that is available on the Communities and Local Government website at:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/localgovernment/nondomesticrates200910f
Data are collected at local authority level but not by the size of the property. Data for other years are not available.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) if he will place in the Library a copy of the data on rateable values used as the basis of the statement on page 12 of his Department's consultation paper on the transitional arrangements for the non-domestic rating revaluation 2010 in England that when transitional relief on the 2005 rating list ended on 1 April 2009 many businesses still faced large increases to their full bill; [289909]
(2) what estimate his Department has made of the number of 100,000 former recipients of transitional relief receiving significantly higher 2009-10 rates bills, referred to in his Department's Explanatory Memorandum to the Non-Domestic Rating (Deferred Payments) (England) Regulations 2009, which were (a) small and (b) large properties in each region; and what the average percentage increase was in bills in respect of those properties in 2009-10. [289914]
Barbara Follett: The statement on page 12 of the consultation paper “Transitional Arrangements for the Non-Domestic Rating Revaluation 2010 in England” was based on information contained in the August 2004 consultation paper “NNDR Transitional Arrangements: Consultation” which stated that 3,750 large properties and 90,000 small properties would benefit from transitional relief in the fourth year of the scheme. No estimates are available for the regional split.
The earlier consultation paper can be found in the following link:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/localgovernment/pdf/430100.pdf
The amount of transitional relief awarded in 2008-09 was £99 million. We do not collect data on the number of properties that received that relief.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the overall percentage change in the rateable value of (a) small and (b) large properties will be in each region under the 2010 rates revaluation. [289910]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The table shows the overall percentage change in the rateable value of small and large properties in each region under the 2010 revaluation.
A small property is defined as having a rateable value less than £18,000, or £25,500 in London. This is the definition proposed in the 2010 Transitional Relief consultation document published on 8 July 2009.
The analysis uses data from the Local List only; properties on the Central List are excluded.
| Percentage change in rateable value | ||
| Government Office Region | Small properties | Large properties |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 342W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what methodology his Department used to calculate the increase in the small business rateable value threshold for (a) London and (b) elsewhere referred to on page 10 of his Department’s consultation paper on transitional arrangements for the non-domestic rating revaluation 2010 in England. [289911]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The thresholds to be used in the 2010 transitional arrangements for large and small properties have been calculated by taking the same thresholds from the 2005 scheme, increasing them by the overall percentage increase in rateable values at the 2010 revaluation and then rounding them to the nearest £500. These figures are based on the same ratings list as used for the consultation document “the transitional arrangements for the non-domestic rating revaluation 2010 in England” published on 8 July 2009. The ratings list is a live database and is continually being updated (to reflect appeals, deletions, additions, physical alterations, splits and mergers).
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many deletions from the ratings list have been made in each region in each year from 2004-05 to 2009-10; and what the total rateable value was of such deletions in each such year. [289912]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The information is contained within the following table:
| Assessments deleted( 1) from the 2000 and 2005 rating lists as at 31 July 2009 | ||||
| Government region | Year | Rating list | Number assessments | Rateable value |
| (1) Excludes all reconstituted deletions and property effected by boundary or address changes. | ||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 346W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will place in the Library a copy of the data on rateable values used as the basis for the statement in his Department's press releases of 8 July 2009, Government consults on help with business rate bills, that as a result of revaluation and the relief arrangements one million businesses will see an average decrease of £770 in 2010-11. [289913]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The 2010 business rates revaluation will reduce the rates bill for 1,028,500 properties. In total their rates bill will fall by £787,660,000 in 2010-11 after transitional relief but before inflation. That is an average, after rounding, of £770 per property. These figures are based on the same ratings list as used for the consultation document “The Transitional Arrangements for the Non-domestic Rating Revaluation 2010 in England” published on 8 July 2009. The ratings list is a live database and is continually being updated (to reflect appeals, deletions, additions, physical alterations, splits and mergers).
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much of the costs to Government of the Non-Domestic Rating (Deferred Payments) (England) Regulations 2009, referred to in the impact assessment for those Regulations are attributable to (a) bad debt and (b) the value of the discounted repayments being less than the value of the deferred amount. [289915]
Barbara Follett: The Impact Assessment to accompany the Non-Domestic Rating (Deferred Payments) (England) Regulations estimated that between 50 per cent. and 90 per cent. of businesses will choose to defer the increase in their rates bill in 2009-10; and the percentage of revenue that could be written off as bad debt could be between 1 per cent. and 5 per cent. of the total amount deferred. On this basis, the amount of bad debt is estimated to be between £2 million and £20 million in both 2010-11 and 2011-12.
Using the standard discount rate of 3.5 per cent. and assuming between 50 per cent. and 90 per cent. of businesses take up the option to defer the increase in business rates in 2009-10 and that between 1 per cent. and 5 per cent. of payments will be written off as bad debt, the final net present value of the deferral scheme to Government is estimated at between £20 million and £80 million. The rationale behind the standard discount rate can be found in Annex 6 of HM Treasury's Green Book.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what percentage of payments due under (a) the business rates deferral scheme and (b) transitional arrangements for the non-domestic ratings revaluation 2010 his Department expects to be written off as bad debt. [289916]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Impact Assessment accompanying the Non-Domestic Rating (Deferred Payments) Regulations states that the amount of revenue written off as bad debt resulting from ratepayers choosing to defer the increase in their business rates could be between 1 per cent. and 5 per cent. of the total amount deferred.
No estimate has been made of the percentage of payments that are expected to be written off as bad debt as the transitional arrangements themselves do not lead to any outstanding liabilities which are at risk of bad debt.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the £50,000 threshold for the new supplementary business rate in London will be increased in line with the average increase in rateable values following the 2010 business rates revaluation. [289356]
Ms Rosie Winterton: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Beckenham (Mrs. Lait) on 6 October 2008, Official Report, column 350W.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what representations he has received from Ministerial colleagues on the effect of the application of retrospective business rates on firms located in ports in the last 12 months. [290467]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department maintains regular communications with ministerial colleagues. As was the case with previous administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such communications.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he plans to give a greater role for parish and town councils under the Sustainable Communities Act 2007. [292428]
Barbara Follett: Local authorities already have a duty to involve local representatives when carrying out any of their functions and parish and town councils should be consulted as part of the process for submitting proposals under the Sustainable Communities Act 2007. A clause to that effect was included in the statutory guidance for local authorities which can be found on the Communities and Local Government website at:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/localgovernment/strongsafeprosperous
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to ensure that planning application data held by local authorities and collected via a standardised hub connector interface is available to the public. [289503]
Mr. Ian Austin: Planning applications are public documents which local planning authorities are required to publish on a planning register. Many planning registers are made available online.
The e-Consultation hub is a central computer system, connected to the internet, that facilitates more rapid and efficient consultations between all participants in the planning process. It does not hold data itself but standardises and facilitates the transfer of data between all parties.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps are being taken to ensure that central government bodies which are statutory consultees on planning applications provide comments in a timely manner. [289541]
John Healey: The Government are developing proposals to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of engagement by all statutory consultees, as part of a programme of measures in response to the recommendations of Killian Pretty Review of the planning application process. It is proposed to publish draft proposals for consultation on this matter later in 2009.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government in which local authorities core strategies have been rejected by the Planning Inspectorate as unsound; and for what reasons. [290478]
Mr. Ian Austin: Eight authorities have had their core strategy development plan documents found unsound. The authorities are Carrick District Council (as was); Chichester District Council; Lichfield City Council; Ryedale District Council; Stafford Borough Council; Restormel Borough Council (as was); Teignbridge District Council and the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead.
A paper has been placed in the House Library which sets out in summary the reasons why each core strategy has been found sound.
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many and what proportion of planning applications made in each district or single tier authority were determined by planning inspectors in the latest period for which figures are available. [291659]
Mr. Ian Austin: None. Planning Inspectors determine appeals against refusal of planning permission or non-determination of planning applications.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what grades of official in his Department may not stand as candidates in (a) local and (b) general elections. [289550]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The rules for civil servants wishing to undertake political activity are set by the Cabinet Office and can be found in the Civil Service Management Code on the civil service website:
http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/work/codes/index.aspx
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of privately owned properties which meet the Decent Homes standard. [290230]
Mr. Ian Austin:
The English House Condition Survey estimates that 11.75 million privately owned properties in England met the Decent Homes standard in 2007
(the most recently available estimate from the survey). These properties comprised 64 per cent. of all privately owned in England.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent steps the Government has taken to ensure private landlords comply with health and safety legislation in their properties. [291520]
Mr. Ian Austin: The Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) is a risk-based evaluation tool to help local authorities identify and protect against potential risks and hazards to health and safety from any deficiencies identified in dwellings. It was introduced under the Housing Act 2004 and came into effect on 6 April 2006. It applies to residential properties in England including those in the private rented sector.
The HHSRS assesses 29 categories of housing hazard, each hazard has a weighting which will help determine whether the property is rated as having category 1 (serious) or category 2 (other) hazards. Local authorities are responsible for the local implementation and enforcement of the HHSRS. If a property is found to contain serious hazards, the local authority has a duty to take the most appropriate action in relation to the hazard.
The Housing Act 2004 also introduced mandatory houses in multiple occupation (HMO) licensing which places a duty on private landlords of licensable HMOs to ensure that their properties meet basic health and safety standards.
There are a choice of enforcement options which are available to local authorities. The route followed is for the authority to decide, having regard to statutory enforcement guidance.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will amend planning guidance to require provision for high-speed internet access to be made in the construction of major new housing developments. [289879]
Mr. Ian Austin: Planning policy guidance note 8: Telecommunications (PPG8) sets out Government policy on planning and telecommunications states that in considering planning applications for other forms of development, planning authorities will wish to consider telecommunications issues. They should encourage prospective developers of new housing, office and industrial estates to consider with all relevant telecommunications operators how the telecommunications needs of the occupiers will be met. Developers should provide adequate ducting for telecommunications cables (and for other services where appropriate) to be installed at the outset both underground and in the structure of the building, sufficient to meet foreseeable demand for competitive services likely to be provided to those estates.
PPG8 does not specifically refer to provision for high speed internet access but this is clearly an important aspect of modern communication and is within the scope of PPG8.
Local planning authorities should develop and apply their own policies on high speed internet access in line with this national policy guidance taking into account the development priorities for their area.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will support tax incremental funding pilots to promote local authority-led regeneration. [290483]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Government are working with interested local authorities and city-regions to assess the scope for accelerating development by allowing investment in infrastructure to be financed from the increased property tax base that could be enabled by the existence of improved infrastructure. As part of this, the Government are exploring with local authorities the potential benefits, costs and feasibility of piloting such an approach.
The Government will report on this analysis, and the options for taking it forward, in the 2009 pre-Budget Report.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Meriden of 23 April 2009, Official Report, column 889W, on the Sub-National Review, when he will place in the Library copies of the summaries of the Steering Group meetings. [289627]
Ms Rosie Winterton: I have placed summaries of the Steering Group meetings in the House Library.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many landlords have applied for a selective licence in Coventry. [291519]
Mr. Ian Austin: There is no selective licensing designation currently in place in Coventry city council and therefore no landlords have applied for a selective licence in Coventry.
Ms Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average weekly rent rates were for tenants residing in (a) private housing, (b) housing association and other housing provided by registered social landlords and (c) local authority housing in (i) 2007-08 and (ii) 2008-09. [291437]
Mr. Ian Austin: Average monthly rents for private tenants in England are published on the Communities and Local Government website in table 731. These monthly rents equate to average weekly rents of £129 in 2007-08. Data for private rents in 2008-09 is not yet available. These rent estimates are based on data from the Survey of English Housing.
http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/xls/141452.xls
Average weekly rents for registered social landlords are published on the Communities and Local Government website in table 704. As at 31 March, the average weekly rent in England was £70 in 2008 and was £74 in 2009. These rent figures apply to general needs units only and are collected by the Tenant Services Authority, through the regulatory statistical return.
http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/xls/141632.xls
Average weekly rents for local authorities are published on the Communities and Local Government website in table 702. The average weekly rent in England was £62 in 2007-08 and £64 in 2008-09 (provisional). These rent figures are collected from housing revenue account subsidy forms.
http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/xls/table-702.xls
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many homes have been repossessed in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England in each year since 1997. [291803]
Mr. Ian Austin: There are two independent sources of data on actual numbers of mortgage possessions: The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) and the Financial Services Authority (FSA). However both are only available for the United Kingdom as a whole.
The Council of Mortgage Lenders latest press release on repossessions is on their
http://www.cml.org.uk/cml/media/press/2357
The Financial Services Authority data is available on their website at
http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/Doing/Regulated/Returns/IRR/statistics/
12 Oct 2009 : Column 351W—continued
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many home repossessions there were in Coventry in the last quarter for which information is available. [291521]
Mr. Ian Austin: There are two independent sources of data on actual numbers of mortgage possessions: the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) and the Financial Services Authority (FSA). However, both are only available for the United Kingdom as a whole.
The Council of Mortgage Lenders latest press release on repossessions is on their website at:
http://www.cml.org.uk/cml/media/press/2357
The Financial Services Authority data is available on their website at:
http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/Doing/Regulated/Returns/IRR/statistics/
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on how many occasions and for what reasons the District Auditor has corresponded with Bassetlaw council concerning the Turner Road development in Worksop in the last 12 months. [292387]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The District Auditor has written to Bassetlaw district council about the Turner Road development on one occasion in the last 12 months. This followed an approach by Bassetlaw district council to request his views on the development project.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what delays in the Turner Road development site in Worksop have resulted from District Auditor interventions in the last 12 months. [292388]
Ms Rosie Winterton: I am not aware of any delay in the Turner Road development resulting from District Auditor intervention.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many shared ownership purchases have been made in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum, (c) Hertfordshire and (d) England by people on social housing waiting lists in each year since 2000; and what proportion of all such sales in each of those areas this represented in each such year. [289407]
Mr. Ian Austin: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 13 July 2009, Official Report, column 134W.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of rough sleepers in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire in each year since 1990. [290461]
Mr. Ian Austin: Annual rough sleeping figures have been collected since 1998. The figures are based on local authority street counts and until 2008, estimates where a street count did not take place.
| Number of rough sleepers | ||||||||||||
| 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | |
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of rough sleepers in each local authority area in the North West in each year since 1990; and what methodology his Department uses to calculate such estimates. [289277]
Mr. Ian Austin: Annual rough sleeping figures have been collected since 1998. The figures are based on local authority street counts and until 2008 estimates where a street count did not take place. Local authorities evaluate the extent of rough sleeping within their area in accordance with the methodology on street counts set out in CLG’s “Guidance on evaluating the extent of rough sleeping—2007 revision”.
| Number of rough sleepers in the north west: | ||||||||||||
| 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | |
|
Cheshire East (Congleton, Crewe and Nantwich and Macclesfield) | ||||||||||||
|
Cheshire West and Chester (Chester, Ellesmere Port and Neston and Vale Royal) | ||||||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 356W—continued
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the average annual cost to a registered social landlord arising from their designation as a public body; and if he will make a statement. [291581]
Mr. Ian Austin: No such estimate has been made. Registered social landlords (RSLs) are independent, not-for-profit organisations that are responsible for their own aims, objectives, performance and management. The Tenant Services Authority regulates RSLs in England to ensure that they provide decent homes and services for tenants.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of (a) local authority and (b) housing association homes in each local authority area in the East of England met the Decent Homes Standard in each of the last 10 years. [289298]
Mr. Ian Austin: A set of tables containing the information requested has been placed in the House Library.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government for what reasons registered social landlords (RSLs) are exempt from the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000; in what ways RSLs are accountable to their residents; and what powers local councils have over RSLs operating in their area. [290436]
Mr. Ian Austin: In relation to the reasons why registered social landlords (RSLs) are exempt from the Freedom of Information Act 2000, I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Beckenham (Mrs. Lait) on 6 July 2009, Official Report, column 593W.
RSLs are independent not-for-profit organisations responsible for their own aims, objectives, performance and management. The Government sponsors the Tenant Services Authority (TSA) to regulate RSLs to ensure that they provide decent homes and services for tenants.
Local councils have no regulatory powers over RSLs operating in their area.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department has commissioned research into the legality of giving priority in social housing allocation policies to local residents; and if he will make a statement. [290424]
John Healey: Under the Housing Act 1996, local authorities may take into account any local connection which exists between an applicant and the authority’s area, in determining priority between those in the reasonable preference categories.
New statutory guidance, which we have published for consultation, (“Fair and Flexible, July 2009”) reinforces the message that local authorities have flexibility to take into account local needs and priorities when determining their allocation policies, including local connection.
Allocation schemes that include local connection should not discriminate against any ethnic group and must comply with the relevant equalities legislation.
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many households have been on social housing waiting lists in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England in each of the last five years. [291544]
Mr. Ian Austin: The number of households registered on social housing waiting lists in each local authority, as at 1 April each year from 1997 to 2008, is published on the Communities and Local Government website in Table 600. The link for this table is given as follows:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/xls/table600.xls
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 7 July 2009, Official Report, column 699W, whether the concerns raised at the meeting with the representatives of the London Leasehold Officers' Forum on 12 August 2009 will be included in the agenda for the next meeting of the Social Sector Working Party. [289376]
Mr. Ian Austin: It was agreed at the Social Sector Working Party meeting held on 20 January that the most appropriate way forward in respect of section 152 of the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 was to allow the Working Party the opportunity to comment on the associated draft regulations when they were available. A copy was sent to them and comments were received from one member of the Working Party which will be taken into account.
A copy was also sent to the representatives of the London Leasehold Officers' Forum following concerns raised at the meeting on 12 May. Comments from both groups will be taken into account when finalising the regulations.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans there are to hold a second round of bids by local authorities under the Sustainable Communities Act 2007. [289538]
Barbara Follett: The Secretary of State invited local authorities to submit proposals under the Sustainable Communities Act to the Local Government Association, acting as ‘selector’, by 31 July 2009. We are co-operating with the Local Government Association as they draw up a short-list of proposals. The timing of future rounds will be considered once the Government have had the opportunity to evaluate the implementation of the relevant sections of the Act.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which principal authorities intend to participate in the provisions of the Sustainable Communities Act 2007. [292427]
Barbara Follett: Following the Secretary of State's invitation, which was issued in October 2008, 100 local authorities have submitted proposals under section 2 of the Sustainable Communities Act 2007. This includes 90 lead authorities and a further 10 authorities included in joint proposals.
Adur District Council
Ashford Borough Council
Bath and North East Somerset Council
Bexley London Borough Council
Birmingham City Council
Borough of Poole
Brighton and Hove City Council
Bristol City Council
Burnley Borough Council
Bury Metropolitan Borough Council
Cambridge City Council
Central Bedfordshire Council
Cheshire West and Chester
Chorley Borough Council
Christchurch Borough Council
City of York Council
Craven District Council
Croydon London Borough Council
Darlington Borough Council
Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council
Dorset County Council
East Devon District Council
East Lindsey District Council
East Riding of Yorkshire Council
Essex County Council
Exeter City Council
Hackney London Borough Council
Hambleton District Council
Hammersmith and Fulham London Borough Council
Hampshire County Council
Harrogate Borough Council
Harrow London Borough Council
Hastings Borough Council
Herefordshire Council
High Peak Borough Council
Islington London Borough Council
Kent County Council
Kettering Borough Council
Kingston upon Thames Royal Borough Council
Lambeth London Borough Council
Leeds City Council
Lewes District Council
Lewisham London Borough Council
Liverpool City Council
Maldon District Council
Mid Devon District Council
Mid Sussex District Council
Newcastle under Lyme Borough Council
Newcastle upon Tyne City Council
Norfolk County Council
North Dorset District Council
North Somerset Council
North Yorkshire County Council
Norwich City Council
Nottingham City Council
Oxford City Council
Oxfordshire County Council
Pendle Borough Council
Purbeck District Council
Redbridge London Borough Council
Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council
Richmondshire District Council
Rother District Council
Ryedale District Council
Scarborough Borough Council
Selby District Council
Sheffield City Council
South Gloucestershire Council
South Hams District Council
South Kesteven District Council
South Lakeland District Council
South Oxfordshire District Council
South Somerset District Council
South Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council
Southampton City Council
Southend-on-Sea Borough Council
Southwark Council
St. Albans City and District Council
Staffordshire Moorlands District Council
Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council
Stroud District Council
Suffolk Coastal District Council
Sutton London Borough Council
Teignbridge District Council
Torridge District Council
Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council
Waltham Forest London Borough Council
Warrington Borough Council
Warwick District Council
West Devon Borough Council
West Dorset District Council
West Lancashire District Council
West Oxfordshire District Council
Westminster City Council
Weymouth and Portland Borough Council
Wiltshire Council
Windsor and Maidenhead Royal Borough
Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council
Worthing Borough Council
Wycombe District Council
Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will bring forward proposals to lift the £25,000 rental cap on the Tenancy Deposit Scheme. [292118]
John Healey: The Government's response to the Review of the Private Rented Sector, published for consultation in May, announced our intention to review the annual rental threshold for assured and assured shorthold tenancies. The consultation closed in August and we are now considering the responses received.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what consultations the Tenant Services Authority has undertaken since its inception; and (a) how much each such consultation had cost and (b) in which phase each such consultation was on the latest date for which figures are available. [291668]
Mr. Ian Austin: Since its establishment in December 2008, the Tenant Services Authority has undertaken a ‘National Consultation’ with tenants and landlords in order to inform the development of its new regulatory framework. The National Conversation is being conducted in two phases. 27,000 social housing tenants from across the country took part in the first phase, which ran from January to March 2009. The second phase is currently ongoing.
In relation to the cost of the National Conversation, I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Member for Hartlepool (Mr. Wright) on 6 May 2009, Official Report, column 251W.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 359W—continued
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will bring forward proposals to permit local authorities to prohibit the speculative subdivision and sale of small plots of (a) greenfield and (b) green belt land without planning permission. [290472]
Mr. Ian Austin: There are existing planning powers available to local authorities to control the physical subdivision of land, principally Article 4 Directions which restrict permitted development rights. These powers can be used in relation to both greenfield and green belt land. The Government do not intend to bring forward further proposals at this time.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many planning applications for waste facility plants have been made in the last 12 months; how many of these have been approved; how many such proposals included (a) energy recovery, (b) recycling and (c) composting; how many landfill sites are in operation; and how many landfill sites have ceased to operate in the last 12 months. [291689]
Mr. Ian Austin: Communities and Local Government collects statistics on the total number of planning applications made on county matters, but this is not broken down into type of proposed development. However, statistics are collected on the number of planning applications decided for waste facility plants. Applications approved in any particular year are not necessarily the same facilities for which applications were made in that year.
Information on the number of applications approved for the requested types of facilities for the period requested is set out in the following table:
| England: July 2008 to June 2009 | |
| Number | |
| Source: Communities and Local Government General Development Control Returns, CPS1/2 | |
Information on the number of landfill sites is held by the Environment Agency. There are currently 484 operational landfill sites in England and Wales. 26 sites ceased to accept waste or started closure proceedings between September 2008 and 2009.
John McDonnell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport (1) what discussions his Department has had with the Association of Train Operating Companies in the last 12 months; and when those discussions took place; [290018]
(2) what discussions his Department has had with the Association of Train Operating Companies on the proposed outsourcing of the work of the National Rail Enquiries Service; [290019]
(3) whether the proposed outsourcing of the work of the National Rail Enquiries Service requires the approval of his Department; and if he will make a statement. [290020]
Chris Mole:
Departmental Ministers and officials have frequent meetings with representatives of the Association of Train Operating Companies to discuss a
range of issues. Outsourcing the operation of the National Rail Enquiries service has been discussed but does not require the Department for Transport's approval.
Peter Bottomley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what assessment he has made of trends in the rate of (a) air proximity incidents and (b) risk-bearing incidents in UK airspace in each of the last five years. [291492]
Paul Clark: I am informed by the independent UK Airprox Board that the number of air proximity events for commercial air transport and general aviation has declined during the period 2004 to 2008, as set out in the following table.
During this period, the number of risk bearing events (airprox categories A and B) for commercial air transport fell from eight to two and for general aviation from 55 to 39.
Military airprox are a matter for the Ministry of Defence. Full details of airprox reports and analysis are to be found at:
www.airproxboard.org.uk
| Commercial Air Transport Airprox | |||||
| Category( 1) | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
| General Aviation Airprox | |||||
| Category | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
| (1 )There are four airprox categories: A—Risk of Collision: An actual risk of collision existed B—Safety not assured: The safety of the aircraft was compromised C—No risk of collision: No risk of collision existed D—Risk not determined: Insufficient information was available to determine the risk involved, or inconclusive or conflicting evidence precluded such determination A ‘risk-bearing’ airprox is one that falls into category A or B. | |||||
Mike Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of pensioners who are entitled to a concessionary bus pass in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire. [289432]
Mr. Khan: The Department for Transport does not maintain records of how many people in local authorities are eligible for concessionary bus passes as concessionary travel is administered locally by Travel Concession Authorities (TCAs).
All older people aged 60 and over are entitled to receive a concessionary bus pass. The Department does not hold figures specifically for Hemel Hempstead which is part of Dacorum TCA. Work that was conducted by the Department prior to the implementation of the
national bus concession showed that as of October 2007, there were 28,296 older people eligible for a concessionary bus pass in Dacorum and 214,415 across all of Hertfordshire.
Mr. Leech: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will estimate the cost to the public purse of introducing and operating for a 12 month period a scrappage scheme for buses akin to that recently introduced in respect of cars. [289301]
Mr. Khan: The cost of a scrappage scheme would vary depending on the design, for example what age of bus it would apply to and the size of the incentive, as well as the market response to the scheme. Rather than introduce a scrappage scheme, we have announced a fund to support the purchase of new low carbon buses. The Green Bus Fund will provide government funding of £30 million over the next two years and is expected to lead to the introduction and operation of several hundred new low carbon buses in England.
As part of the assessment criteria for the Green Bus Fund, bidders will be given credit for any older buses they intend to replace with the new low carbon bus. This will therefore meet the objectives of a scrappage scheme with the added benefit that all the new buses will contribute towards reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much funding his Department has allocated to encourage bicycle usage in Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency in each of the last three years. [292025]
Mr. Khan: The four main streams of departmental funding to encourage cycling in England are local transport plan funding, cycle training grants, "cycle city and town" funding and links to school funding.
The Department allocates integrated transport block and highways maintenance funding to local transport authorities for general capital investment in transport. This funding is not ring-fenced and local authorities have discretion to spend their allocations in line with their priorities.
In the last three years Birmingham received the following amounts of LTP capital funding:
| £ | |
This information is not available at constituency level.
We have awarded cycle training grants to local authorities since 2006-07 to encourage cycling to school. We also provide funding for training direct in schools via grants to the School Sports Partnerships.
Birmingham City Council has received the following cycle training grants:
| £ | |
Birmingham did not receive cycle training grant in 2006-07.
Between April 2006 and March 2009 Sustrans (Sustainable Transport Charity) has on the Department's behalf made available £235,000 in grants for the West Midlands region to deliver a Links to Schools programme working with local authorities. Birmingham City Council was not amongst the grant receivers.
The purpose of the funding is to encourage children to walk and cycle to school. Funding priorities are established by Sustrans. Sustrans are in the final stages of fully finalising their project list for 2009-10 and will be submitting a complete list to DFT shortly.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much funding his Department has allocated to encourage bicycle usage in each local authority area in England and Wales in each of the last five years. [289392]
12 Oct 2009 : Column 363W—continued
Mr. Khan:
The four main streams of departmental funding to encourage cycling in England are local transport plan funding, cycle training grants, "Cycle City and
Town" funding and links to school funding. Funding for cycling in Wales is administered by the Welsh Assembly and not by the Department for Transport.
The Department allocates integrated transport block and highways maintenance funding to local transport authorities for general capital investment in transport. This funding is not ring-fenced and local authorities have discretion to spend their allocations in line with their priorities.
I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 13 July 2009, Official Report, column 89W.
The Department for transport funds 18 Cycle Cities and Towns through Cycling England. The first phase of the Cycling Demonstration Towns programme, from 2005 to 2008, saw six towns across England receive European levels of funding to significantly increase their cycling levels. Aylesbury, Brighton and Hove, Darlington, Derby, Exeter and Lancaster with Morecambe collectively received over £7 million from Cycling England across three years, plus local match-funding, to deliver a range of measures designed to get more people cycling.
In June 2008, Cycling England announced Greater Bristol as the England's first official Cycling City, together with a further 11 Cycling Towns across England. The new city and towns, together with the original six, will benefit from a share of £50 million of departmental funding (match funded by the local authority) to pioneer innovative ways to increase cycling in their areas.
The following table shows the funding situation as agreed with Cycling England in May 2009.
| City or town | Local authority | 2005-08( 1) | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | Total |
| (1 )1 November 2005 to 31 March 2008. | ||||||
The Department provides funding to local authorities for the Links to Schools programme through our delivery agent Sustrans (Sustainable Transport Charity). The purpose of the funding is to encourage children to walk and cycle to school. Funding priorities are established by Sustrans. Sustrans are in the final stages of fully finalising their project list for 2009-10 and will be submitting a complete list to the Department shortly. A table showing the funding for 2005-06 to 2008-09 has been placed in the Libraries of the House.
Mike Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport (1) how much funding his Department has allocated to encourage bicycle usage in Hemel Hempstead constituency in each of the last three years; [289433]
(2) how much his Department allocated for cycle safety training in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire in each of the last five years. [289446]
Mr. Khan: Department for Transport funding to encourage bicycle usage in Dacorum and Hemel Hempstead constituency is largely delivered through Hertfordshire county council. We do not allocate funding directly to Dacorum or Hemel Hempstead. The main three streams of departmental funding to encourage cycling are local transport plan funding, cycle training grants and links to school funding.
The Department allocates integrated transport block and highways maintenance funding to local transport authorities for general capital investment in transport. This funding is not ring-fenced and local authorities have discretion to spend their allocations in line with their priorities. Local Transport Plan funding for Hertfordshire is shown in the table:
| Hertfordshire | ||||
| £000 | ||||
| Integrated Transport | Formulaic Maintenance | Other LTP | Total LTP funding | |
DFT cycle training grants are only available for National Standard training, delivered in England as Bikeability training. Bikeability training promotes safe cycling for children. Cycle training funding for Hertfordshire for the last three years is shown in the table:
| Hertfordshire | |
| Grant (£) | |
This is in addition to any training funded by Hertfordshire county council.
Links to Schools and Cycle Parking
The Department also provides funding to local authorities for the Links to Schools programme through our delivery agent Sustrans (Sustainable Transport Charity).
The purpose of the links is to encourage children to use sustainable modes (walking and cycling) on their way to and from school by creating safer and more convenient routes.
The following table shows departmental funding allocated to links to schools. The funding for 2007-08 was for links to a school in Hertford. With the contribution of the local authority, the total expenditure was £100,000:
| Hertfordshire | |
| Grant (£) | |
Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much his Department spent on advertising in each newspaper in the latest year for which figures are available. [289481]
Chris Mole: This information for the Department for Transport and its agencies is not held centrally in this format and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport in which of his Department’s agencies consultants are acting as interim project managers. [289564]
Chris Mole: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 366W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many (a) mobile telephones, (b) Blackberrys and (c) laptop computers have been issued to staff of his Department in each of the last five years; and how many of these were issued to (i) new staff and (ii) existing staff following the (A) loss or (B) theft of a previous device. [290586]
Chris Mole: The following tables show the known details for DfT (Central) and its agencies—in some cases, certain individual figures are unavailable, or available only at disproportionate cost. We are unable to split between existing and new staff. Where it is unclear whether original items are lost or stolen, they are shown as lost.
The Department for Transport is very conscious of its data security responsibilities and ensures that all mobile data units are properly encrypted.
| DfT (Central) | Mobiles issued( 1) | Blackberrys issued | Laptops issued | Mobiles replaced after loss or theft | BlackBerrys replaced after loss or theft (cannot differentiate) | Laptops replaced after loss or theft |
| (1) Detailed records were not kept of the individual issue of new mobiles in DfT (Central)—the figures marked with an asterisk are the estimated total numbers held at the mid point of the year. | ||||||
| Mobiles issued (excluding Blackberry) | Blackberrys issued | Laptops issued | Mobiles replaced after loss or theft | BlackBerrys replaced after los or theft | Laptops replaced after loss or theft | |
| (1 )Lost. (2 )Stolen. | ||||||
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what flexi-time arrangements were available to staff within the Department in each of the last five years; and how many staff participated in such arrangements in each such year. [290593]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport (DfT) operate a Flexible Working Hours System which allows employees, subject to operational needs and line management agreement, to start and finish work between a flexible range of agreed hours provided they are present during certain hours of the day known as core-time and work a set number of hours each week. Staff can choose to take time off for any accrued time.
Not all DfT's business units keep a central record of the number of staff who participate in flexi-time arrangements and not all are able to provide the numbers of staff who have participated in flexi-time arrangements over the last five years. This information can be provided only by incurring disproportionate costs.
Stephen Hammond: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport which legislative provisions introduced by the Department since 1997 have not yet been brought into force. [292339]
Chris Mole: I have placed in the Libraries of the House a list of the provisions in Acts for which the Department for Transport has lead responsibility, which have received Royal Assent since 1 January 1997 and which remain to be brought into force.
Stephen Hammond: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport which legislative provisions introduced by his Department's predecessors since 1997 have been repealed. [292340]
Chris Mole: I have placed in the Libraries of the House a list of the provisions in Acts for which the Department for Transport has lead responsibility, which have received Royal Assent since 1 January 1997 and which have been repealed.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate he has made of the average length of employment of staff of his Department at each Civil Service pay band. [290589]
Chris Mole: The central Department for Transport and its agencies recorded average length of employment of staff by civil service pay band as:
| CS grade | Years |
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many properties owned by his Department were liable for payment of (a) business rates and (b) empty property rates in each of the last five years; and what the liability in respect of each was in each such year. [290594]
Chris Mole: The information is not held in the format requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what employee reward schemes are offered to staff of his Department; what the purpose of each scheme is; how many staff participate in each scheme; and what the cost of operating each scheme was in each of the last five years. [290595]
Chris Mole: The information requested can only be provided at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289733]
Chris Mole: I have assumed responsibility as the Minister responsible for overseeing delivery of value for money in the Department for Transport. The Department is committed to reforming public services to improve services to the citizen and we are working closely with colleagues in the centre of Government on this important agenda.
We have set in hand work to review our corporate functions and to lead our transformation programme, which will complement the work going on in the government-wide Operational Efficiency programme. At the strategic level we are also participating fully in the Public Value programme, which will help to establish key priorities going forward, whilst deriving the maximum value for money in how we carry out our business.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what data his Department holds on the level of diversity in its recruitment of employees in each of the last three years. [290509]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport holds employee diversity data in line with the statutory monitoring requirements for public bodies set out in the Race Relations Act. This includes recruitment.
The Department additionally maintains this information by gender and disability. The Department also holds diversity data by age, sexual orientation, religion and belief, and by working pattern.
This information is published on the websites of the central Department and on those of the Department’s agencies. However, information for all of the last three years is not available for all parts of the Department.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what proportion of his Department’s waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289663]
Chris Mole: For the latest period, financial year 2008-09, the Department for Transport, including its Executive agencies, recycled 47 per cent. of its waste arisings.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many sick days were taken by staff of his Department in each of the last five years; and what the cost to the public purse of these absences was. [290588]
Chris Mole: Since 2006 staff sickness has been published quarterly via the Department for Transport external website. Figures are provided using a rolling 12-month period as per Cabinet Office sickness absence methodology:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/about/sickabsence/sickabsence
Under previous reporting methodology an average salary has been used to calculate the cost of sickness absence to the public purse. However, under current Cabinet Office methodology an average salary has not been identified. The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 370W—continued
John Mason: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many external training courses were attended by staff of his Department in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of each course. [289605]
Chris Mole: The following table lists the number of external training courses attended by staff in the Department for Transport (DfT) where information is available, however it has not been possible to provide costs for each course:
| Agency | Number of training courses | Total cost (£) |
| (1) Figure not available. | ||
This information is not held centrally by the Central DfT, Highways Agency, and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and would incur disproportionate costs to obtain this.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much his Department spent on (a) train travel, (b) air travel and (c) restaurant meals for (i) Ministers and (ii) staff in his Department in each of the last five years. [290116]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport could provide this information only at disproportionate cost.
Travel by Ministers and civil servants is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code and the Civil
Service Management Code respectively, and all spending on official entertainment is made in accordance with the principles set out in Managing Public Money.
The Cabinet Office publishes an annual list of overseas travel over £500 undertaken by Ministers. The 2008-09 list was published on 16 July and can be viewed at:
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/propriety and ethics/ministers/travel_gifts.aspx
The Department for Transport will shortly be publishing details of expenses and hospitality received by senior officials on a quarterly basis.
Harry Cohen: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what recent reports he has received of the use of data illegally obtained from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency on behalf of media organisations: and if he will make a statement. [289727]
Paul Clark: The Department for Transport has received no reports about the use of data illegally obtained from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency on behalf of media organisations.
Peter Bottomley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what his policy is on the implementation of eCall in-car communication technology in (a) the UK and (b) the EU; what estimate his Department has made of the costs and benefits of implementation of this technology; and if he will make a statement. [291491]
Paul Clark: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 5 March 2009, Official Report, column 1724W.
The European Commission is currently finalising a further study including a review of eCall deployment within UK. We will review the report when it is made available and consider our position as necessary in light of any new evidence or information.
Mr. Kemp: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what plans he has for the establishment of recharging points for electric and hybrid plug-in vehicles. [289336]
Mr. Khan: The Government have made available up to £30 million to support the roll out of charging infrastructure for electric vehicles in a small number of lead cities and regions in the UK. This scheme, Plugged In Places, is due to be launched later this year. In addition, the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Grant Scheme supports smaller proposals in the UK, with an overall budget of £1 million until the end of 2010.
In addition, a large number of people, who have off-street parking or garages, will be able to charge their electric vehicles at home and we expect a significant proportion of charging points to be installed by businesses and developers to supplement publicly supported infrastructure.
Mr. Kemp: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many charging points for plug-in and electric and hybrid vehicles he expects to be in use in each year from 2010 to 2015. [289337]
Mr. Khan: A forecast has not been made, at this time, of the total number of recharging points likely to be in use between the years 2010 and 2015. A large number of people already have access to off-street parking or garages and will be able to charge their electric vehicles at home and we would expect a significant proportion of new charging points to be installed by businesses and developers during these years.
In addition, the Government are making available up to £30 million, through the Plugged in Places scheme, to support a small number of lead cities and regions roll out electric vehicle charging infrastructure. Bids for this funding are due to be received next year, so it is not yet possible to estimate how many charging points it will deliver. The smaller Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Grant Programme has delivered 72 charging points to date, with further rounds of funding in 2010-11 and 2011-12.
Mr. Doran: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what consideration the Civil Aviation Authority gave to the approval in operational aircraft carriage terms of the use of wrist watch personal location beacons by passengers on helicopters serving the North Sea oil and gas industry (a) during the initial proof and concept trials carried out by BP and (b) subsequently. [289244]
Paul Clark: Wrist watch personal locator beacons carried by passengers on helicopters flying in support of the exploration and production of oil and gas in the North sea, are non-approved equipment. There is no requirement in aviation legislation that requires the carriage of such equipment. CAA gave due consideration to the potential safety implications of such carriage but has not approved any such carriage of electronic equipment.
In January 2009 the Civil Aviation Authority held a meeting with helicopter operations and other stakeholders to discuss the concerns about the potential effects of inadvertent transmissions. These include radio interference on the emergency frequency, interference with aircraft systems, interference with other beacons, and the generation of false alarms. As a result the Civil Aviation Authority established a Working Group to examine the issues in depth, and work by this group continues.
Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what recent assessment he has made of the potential levels of traffic which would be diverted from the A25 between Wrotham Heath and its junction with the A21 in the event that east-facing slip roads were constructed at Junction 5 on the M25. [290302]
Chris Mole:
In considering the possible impacts from the provision of east-facing slip roads at Junction 5 of the M25, the Highways Agency modelled the potential
changes to future traffic flows at Junction 5 of the M25, and on the surrounding road network using available data.
This assessment suggested that (with the east-facing slip roads in place) the traffic flows in 2015 on the A25 between the A21 and the A227 would increase eastbound by 6 per cent. and decrease westbound by 11 per cent. Traffic on the A25 between the A227 and Wrotham Heath would decrease by 8 per cent. eastbound and 15 per cent. westbound.
Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what recent consideration he has given to the construction of east-facing slip roads at junction 5 on the M25; what recent estimate he has made of the cost of the construction of such slip roads; and if he will make a statement. [290303]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport set out its investment programme for Highways Agency national roads until 2014 in Britain's Transport Infrastructure: Motorways and Trunk Roads (January 2009).
Proposals for improvements to Junction 5 of the M25 were not prioritised for implementation and were remitted to our longer-term transport planning process to establish the spending priorities for transport across modes after 2014.
As part of that process, we have assessed the scale of future challenges facing our national transport networks. This concluded that the challenges faced at Junction 5 of the M25 are not of a sufficiently high strategic national priority to be considered further in the current study work to 2014.
The provisional estimated cost of construction of east facing slip roads at M25 junction 5, based on the design developed in 2004, is £77 million (at 2008 prices). However, in the absence of further detailed engineering assessments of the proposal, this cost estimate should be treated as indicative only.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport (1) what information his Department holds on the number of trains which operate on the Manchester to Liverpool railway line each week; [291453]
(2) what information his Department holds on the number of passengers who use the Manchester to Liverpool railway line; [291454]
(3) what information his Department holds on the number of (a) passengers who use and (b) trains which operate on the Preston to Manchester railway line each week. [291456]
Chris Mole: The number of trains which operate between Manchester and Liverpool via Newton-le-Willows are shown in the following table.
| Manchester-Liverpool via Newton-le-Willows | |
| Number | |
The number of trains which operate between Preston and Manchester each day are shown in the following table.
| Preston to Manchester | |
| Number | |
Only a minority of these services begin at Preston; most commence or terminate at variety of stations in Lancashire and Cumbria off the electrified network.
More detailed information can be found on-line using the National Rail website, or by consulting timetables on the Network Rail website, at the following links:
http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/
http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%20documents/eNRT/May09/timetables/Table90.pdf
http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%20documents/eNRT/May09/timetables/Table82.pdf
While the Department for Transport is able to access data from train operating companies on passenger numbers, such information is provided to us in commercial confidence.
Following electrification of the Chat Moss line between Manchester and Liverpool via Newton-le-Willows by 2013, all Manchester-Scotland services will be converted to electric train operation. Instead of running on the unelectrified route via Bolton and Preston, as they do at present, this will mean that nine trains per weekday will run west from Manchester on the newly-electrified Chat Moss route and connect with the electrified West Coast Main Line at Newton-le-Willows.
It is also anticipated, following Chat Moss electrification, that the number of Manchester-Liverpool services operating via this route will be increased, without reducing the number of trains running between Manchester and Liverpool via Warrington Central.
Electrification of the Chat Moss line will secure synergies with other planned upgrades, including infrastructure improvements which will raise the maximum line speed from 75 mph to 90 mph and thereby cut the Manchester-Liverpool journey time from 44 minutes to a target of 30 minutes.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what recent representations his Department has received on the electrification of the Preston to Manchester railway line; and if he will make a statement. [291455]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport has received two representations on electrification of the Preston to Manchester railway line. The Government are looking intensively at the costs and benefits of further electrification, including on this line.
Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many miles less polluting heavy goods vehicles and Euro emissions standards (a) 0, (b) I, (c) II, (d) III, (e) IV and (f) V vehicles travelled in the UK in 2008. [290301]
Mr. Khan: The Department for Transport does not hold these data. However, we have the following estimates on the proportion of the heavy goods vehicle fleet that met each Euro Standard in 2008. This was provided as part of a research project conducted by Transport Research Laboratory for the Department, to provide updated input to UK air quality emissions inventory modelling:
| Percentage of the fleet at each Euro Standard (2008) | ||||||
| Percentage | ||||||
| Pre Euro | Euro I | Euro II | Euro III | Euro IV | Euro V | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 375W—continued
The UK heavy-duty vehicle fleet, in 2008, consisted of 316,800 rigid vehicles and 119,500 articulated vehicles. The average annual distance travelled was 28,500 miles for rigid vehicles, and 73,000 miles for articulated vehicles. Within these averages, however, data from road freight surveys suggest there is significant variation with vehicle age, with newer vehicles in general having higher annual mileages than older ones. Consequently the contribution of vehicles at lower Euro standards to total mileage will be lower than the fleet proportions alone would suggest.
In addition to the Euro standards, EU emissions directives also include a voluntary “Environmentally Enhanced Vehicle” standard, which in fact is very similar to the Euro V standard. We are unable to provide specific data relating to vehicles in this emissions class, but we believe that they form only a very small proportion of the vehicle fleet.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport (1) what research his Department (a) has commissioned, (b) plans to commission and (c) has evaluated on the merits of installing a seat belt reminder system in all new motor vehicles sold; and if he will make a statement; [289575]
(2) what research his Department (a) has commissioned, (b) plans to commission and (c) has evaluated on the effects of seat belt reminder systems on seat belt wearing rates; and if he will make a statement. [289580]
Paul Clark: The last UK seat belt wearing survey in 2008 recorded 95 per cent. of drivers and 93 per cent. of front seat passengers wore seat belts in passenger cars. Published research has indicated that seat belt reminders can have a positive effect on seat belt wearing rates. The Department for Transport has not commissioned and has no plans to commission further research on the merits of installing a seat belt reminder system in all new vehicles sold.
Mr. Amess:
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport (1) what recent discussions he has had
with the motor industry on the installation of a seat belt reminder system in all new motor vehicles sold; and if he will make a statement; [289576]
(2) what recent discussions he has had with the European Commission on the introduction of seat belt reminders in new vehicles; and if he will make a statement. [289583]
Paul Clark: The motor industry was partner to detailed negotiations that led to requirements within regulations made under the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe for seat belt reminders to be fitted to the driver’s seat in passenger cars. The European Commission has brought forward proposals to adopt these requirements into Community law as part of their regulatory simplification process and the Department for Transport will be meeting with Commission officials later this month.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate he has made of the cost of installing a seat belt reminder system in the front seats of motor vehicles; and if he will make a statement. [289577]
Paul Clark: Currently, many new cars are equipped with seat belt reminders for their front seats on a voluntary basis. We have not estimated the costs of this installation.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when his Department last undertook a review of the evidence relating to the effectiveness of seat belts in reducing deaths and injury that drew on (a) UK and (b) international research; and if he will make a statement. [289578]
Paul Clark: The most recent report the Department has produced on the effectiveness of wearing seat belts was published in November 2008, Road Safety Research Report 98—“Strapping Yarns: Why People Do and Do Not Wear Seat Belts”.
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/roadsafety/research/rsrr/theme5/reportno98.pdf
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will take steps to allow persons guilty of an offence under section 14(3) of the Road Traffic Act 1988, in lieu of a fine, to attend a driving safety course paid for by the offender that includes instruction on the benefits of wearing seat belts; and if he will make a statement. [289579]
Paul Clark: The decision to offer any driving safety course as an alternative to prosecution or a fixed penalty notice is entirely a matter for the police where they feel it is the most productive option. There is nothing to prevent the police offering courses in respect of the benefits of using seat belts.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what the seat belt wearing rate has been in each province in Northern Ireland (a) in the last period for which figures are available and (b) in each month since 2005. [289582]
Paul Clark: The Department for Transport does not hold this information. This is now a matter for the Northern Ireland Administration.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will bring forward proposals to provide incentives to consumers to purchase cars fitted with a seat belt reminder system; and if he will make a statement. [289584]
Paul Clark: There are no plans to do so.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what recent discussions he has had with motor insurers on insurance premiums for drivers of vehicles fitted with a seat belt reminder system; and if he will make a statement. [289620]
Paul Clark: The Department for Transport had no discussions with motor insurers on insurance premiums for drivers of vehicles fitted with a seat belt reminder system.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what records his Department has on the percentage of cars sold which were fitted with a seat belt reminder system in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [289702]
Paul Clark: The Department for Transport does not collect this information.
Mr. Goodwill: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the MOT test in identifying vehicles which may be dangerous due to blacking out or tinting of windows. [291634]
Paul Clark: The MOT test does not include a check of the level of light transmittance through tinted vehicle windows. To include this item in the MOT test would require all 19,000 MOT test stations to incur expenditure on special test equipment. This could involve a cost of around £10 million and there would be additional costs associated with calibrating and maintaining the equipment. Given that relatively few vehicles appear to have excessively tinted front windows we consider that the issue is best addressed through enforcement at the roadside.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 23 June 2009, Official Report, columns 766-8W, on motorcycles: accidents, how many moped riders aged (a) 16, (b) 17, (c) 18, (d) 19 and (e) 20 years were (i) injured and (ii) killed in road traffic accidents in (A) the London Borough of Wandsworth, (B) London and (C) England in 2008. [290164]
Paul Clark: The number of (i) injured casualties and (ii) fatalities resulting from reported personal injury road accidents for moped riders aged (a) 16, (b) 17, (c) 18, (d) 19 and (e) 20 years-old in (A) London borough of Wandsworth, (B) London and (C) England in 2008 is given in the table:
| Reported number of injured and fatal casualties by age of moped riders( 1) in London b orough of Wandsworth, Greater London, and England: 2008 | |||||||
| Number of casualties from injury accidents reported to the police | |||||||
| London b orough of Wandsworth( 2) | Greater London( 2) | England | |||||
| Age | Injured | Killed | Injured | Killed | Injured | Killed | |
| (1 )Motorcycles with engine size of 50cc or less. (2) Source: Transport for London. | |||||||
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many moped riders aged (a) 16, (b) 17, (c) 18, (d) 19 and (e) 20 years have passed the practical moped test (i) nationally, (ii) in Wandsworth and (iii) in London in each of the last five years. [290165]
| Nationally | ||||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | Total | |
| Greater London | ||||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | Total | |
The Driving Standards Agency has no test centre at Wandsworth.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many moped riders aged (a) 16, (b) 17, (c) 18, (d) 19 and (e) 20 years have been licensed to drive on public roads (i) nationally, (ii) in Wandsworth and (iii) in London in each of the last five years. [290166]
Paul Clark: The following table shows the number of moped drivers aged 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20 who were licensed to drive on public roads in GB, London and Wandsworth.
| Age | GB | London | Wandsworth | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 379W—continued
Mr. Tom Harris: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what proportion of the costs of refranchising of East Coast Mainline railway services will be met by (a) National Express and (b) his Department. [289616]
Chris Mole: The full cost of the refranchising of the East Coast Mainline railway will be met by the National Express East Coast performance bond.
Mr. Tom Harris: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate he has made of the cost of refranchising the East Coast Mainline railway service. [289617]
Chris Mole: Should National Express relinquish the franchise prior to the end of its full term, the costs of re-franchising are currently estimated to be £1.2 million.
These costs will be recoverable from a performance bond that will fall due under the current franchise agreement.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 20 July 2009, Official Report, column 757W, on National Express East Coast, from which budgets the budget cover is drawn. [289813]
Chris Mole: Budget cover for the passenger railway is one of several programmes included in section M—Railways of the Department for Transport's Parliamentary Supply Estimates, which can be found at:
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/13403_me07_dft_1st.pdf
Mr. Leech:
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many passenger journeys have been made on Northern Rail services departing from each
conurbation served by Northern Rail in each of the last five years; and what the equivalent figures are for each rail operator serving London and the South East. [289261]
Chris Mole: Statistics on the total number of passenger journeys made by each Train Operating Company (TOC) are published by the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) in their National Rail Trends Yearbook publication, which is available in the House Libraries, or from the ORR website:
www.rail-reg.gov.uk
Paul Rowen: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what his assessment is of the effect that allocation of vehicles to Northern Rail from the high level output specification will have on the level of carbon dioxide emissions of the Northern Rail fleet. [289900]
Chris Mole: In July, the Department for Transport announced a major new electrification programme which radically affects the requirements for train rolling stock over the next decade. In particular, there will be far less need for diesel trains and a greater requirement for electric trains which cause significantly lower levels of carbon dioxide emissions.
The Department will publish a new rolling stock plan in the autumn, taking account of these changed circumstances. It will not be possible to provide an assessment of the impact of additional rolling stock on carbon dioxide emissions until allocations are finalised and contracted.
Paul Rowen: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what the age profile is of the (a) Northern Rail fleet and (b) national rail fleet; and what the age profile of the Northern Rail fleet will be when it has received its allocation of high level output specification vehicles. [289901]
Chris Mole: The average age profile of the Northern fleet and National fleet respectively as of April 2009 is 20.03 years and 18.42 years. The average age of the Northern fleet when it has received its allocation of high level output specification vehicles will depend on the outcome of discussions on additional capacity that are currently taking place with Northern.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport with reference to his Department's response to the independent strategic review into possible extensions to the Blue Badge scheme (a) what progress has been made in implementing a non-Blue Badge option to allow people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) immediate access to parking facilities without incurring penalties and (b) what discussions he has had with the Minister for Disabled People on parking provision for people with IBD. [292142]
Mr. Khan: The information is as follows:
(a) The Department for Transport's response to the independent strategic review of the Blue Badge scheme
set out its preliminary views and formed part of the consultation package on the Comprehensive Blue Badge (Disabled Parking) Reform Strategy (England). The final Strategy, which was published in October 2008, sets out our priorities for action on improving the scheme. This does not include any commitments in respect of people who do not qualify for the scheme, such as those people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). In terms of improving the provision of public toilets, you will be aware of the Government's
Strategic Guide “Improving Public Access to Better Quality Toilets” which sets out how central Government, working in partnership with local authorities, the private sector, and communities, can promote better public access to toilets.
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many pensioners have (a) applied for and (b) received free (i) bus and (ii) rail passes in (A) Bolton and (B) Greater Manchester since the scheme was introduced. [291644]
Mr. Khan: Bolton is part of the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive (GMPTE), which is responsible for administering concessionary travel, including the issuing of passes, in the Greater Manchester area. The Department for Transport does not maintain records of how many pensioners have applied for passes or how many passes individual authorities have issued.
The last information held by the Department was that as of 4 March 2009, the GMPTE scheme had issued 453,000 concessionary passes. This includes passes issued to disabled people as well as those aged 60 and over.
The concessionary pass is valid for travel on local buses anywhere in England and in Greater Manchester the same pass can also be used on local trains and trams. This is not the case in all local authorities but there is a separate national scheme that gives older people discounted travel on rail—the Senior Railcard, which costs £26 per year and gives people aged 60 and over one-third off rail travel across the UK.
Ian Stewart: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what recent assessment he has made of progress in the implementation of initiatives to reduce the cost base of the rail network in the north in respect of (a) early electrification, (b) the tram-train trial and (c) measures to replace older diesel rolling stock. [289352]
Chris Mole: On 23 July the Government announced a major £1.1 billion programme of rail electrification for the Great Western Main Line from London to Swansea and the line between Liverpool and Manchester via Newton-le-Willows.
Liverpool-Manchester electrification will enable the diesel trains currently operating there to be transferred onto other routes, delivering much needed additional capacity. Many services will be able to operate as six-carriage trains instead of three-carriage trains today. It will also
provide an electrified link to the West Coast Main Line, allowing the operation of electric train services from Manchester to Scotland. As a result, the previously planned procurement by the Government of new diesel trains has now been superseded. The Government will publish a new rolling stock plan this autumn, taking account of these changed circumstances.
On 15 September 2009, we announced that the Yorkshire Tram Train Trail was being re-phased with a view to the early introduction of trams between Rotherham and Sheffield using both the Sheffield Supertram Network and Network Rail infrastructure. This project involves South Yorkshire PTE, Network Rail, Northern Trains and the Department for Transport and all partners are working hard to get an early introduction of through trams along the route to demonstrate the benefits of combining heavy and light rail infrastructure.
Mark Hunter: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport with reference to paragraph 16 of the High Level Output Specification Plan Update of July 2008, if he will publish an updated version of the table showing the proposed plan to indicate (a) with which operators, and for how many additional charges contracts have been agreed and (b) with which operators, and for how many additional rail charges, negotiations are still taking place, and what stage these negotiations have reached. [289489]
Chris Mole: On 23 July, the Government announced a programme of electrification, including the Great Western Main Line from London to Swansea and the route from Liverpool to Manchester via Newton-le-Willows. This has radically affected future rolling stock requirements, as there will be far less need for diesel trains. A new rolling stock plan will be published in the autumn setting out a revised strategy for rolling stock requirements.
To date the Department for Transport has procured 550 additional vehicles for the following routes: West Coast, Chiltern, London Midland, First Capital Connect, Southeastern, South Central, and National Express East Anglia.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport (1) pursuant to page 17 of Building Britain's future, when he expects to bring forward plans for rail electrification; [289814]
(2) pursuant to the Prime Minister's Oral Statement of 29 June 2009, Official Report, column 22, on Building Britain's future, when he intends to set out his plans to advance the electrification of transport. [290173]
Chris Mole: On 23 July the Government announced the electrification of the Great Western Main Line between London and Swansea, and of the line between Liverpool and Manchester via Newton-le-Willows. Full details are contained in the document “Britain's Transport Infrastructure: Rail Electrification,” available online at:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/pi/
Copies have been placed in the Library of the House.
Mrs. Villiers:
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 20 July 2009, Official Report, column 762, on
transport: finance, whether Network Rail will be reimbursed for its work electrifying the railway during the 2009 to 2014 spending review period. [290161]
Chris Mole: As with other rail investments, the cost of electrification will be funded by Network Rail and supported by the Government.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 20 July 2009, Official Report, column 762, on transport: finance, whether Network Rail will undertake the work of electrifying the railways during the 2009 to 2014 spending review period. [290162]
Chris Mole: On 23 July the Government announced the electrification of the Great Western Main Line between London and Swansea, and of the line between Liverpool and Manchester via Newton-le-Willows.
On the Great Western Main Line, electrification between London and Bristol will be complete by 2016, and between London and Swansea by 2017. Some of this work will take place during the 2009 to 2014 spending review period.
On the Liverpool-Manchester line, electrification will be complete by 2013. All of this work will take place during the 2009 to 2014 spending review period.
Mr. Evennett: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether any train operating companies have sought a derogation to increase rail fares in 2010 above the limits allowed in their franchise agreements. [291722]
Chris Mole: The only derogations sought so far for the January 2010 round have been related to the fares structure supporting the introduction of Pay As You Go (PAYG) in London.
Mr. Tom Harris: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport in what circumstances his Department would (a) hold a full consultation process before refranchising and (b) use the specification on which the previous franchise had been based in cases where a train operating company surrender a franchise prematurely. [289700]
Chris Mole: It is the Department for Transport's established practice to carry out a public consultation exercise, in line with the Government's Code of Practice on Consultation, before finalising the specification for each new franchise, including where a franchise has been surrendered prematurely.
Mr. Tom Harris: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport which existing rail franchises he expects to return a net premium to his Department by the end of the franchise period, taking into account all anticipated revenue support payments. [289711]
Chris Mole:
The existing rail franchises that are contracted to return a premium to the Department for Transport were set out in my answer of 20 July 2009,
Official Report, column 758W. The Department’s forecasts of any additional receipts or payments under the revenue sharing arrangements in those franchises are commercially confidential.
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much funding his Department has allocated to encouraging use of railways to carry freight in 2009-10. [291961]
Paul Clark: The Department for Transport provides two types of grants to encourage modal shift from road to rail and water:
Freight Facilities Grant (FFG) which helps to offset the capital costs of rail or water freight handling facilities.
Rail Environmental Benefit Procurement Scheme (REPS) which assists companies with the operating costs associated with running rail freight transport instead of road where rail is more expensive than road.
Funding for both is provided by the multi-modal Sustainable Distribution Fund (SDF). The total SDF budget for 2009-10 is £30.4 million, of which £7 million is capital funding.
In addition to grants, the Government have in the last two years announced record levels of rail freight investment to support continued growth including £200 million towards the development of a Strategic Rail Freight Network and over £200 million of funding towards the provision of infrastructure enhancement for freight through the Productivity Transport Innovation Fund.
Ian Stewart: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport for what reasons services on some routes into Greater Manchester are to be withdrawn; and if he will make a statement. [289351]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport is not aware of any plans to withdraw rail services on any routes into Greater Manchester.
With effect from 3 October 2009, services were withdrawn on the Oldham Loop route within Greater Manchester in order to facilitate the conversion of the route to Metrolink tram operation, due to commence in October 2011. The conversion represents a multi-party investment by local and national stakeholders of around £540 million, of which £240 million is being provided by central Government.
Mark Hunter: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what assumptions on economic growth in Greater Manchester his Department used in determining the number of additional rail carriages to be allocated to rail operators serving Greater Manchester. [289488]
Chris Mole: The High Level Output Specification of July 2007 assumed a compound annual growth rate in peak passenger demand on regional services of 2.3 per cent. from 2006 to 2017.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 384W—continued
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many and what percentage of train services serving Hull have been (a) delayed and (b) cancelled in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement. [290050]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport does not hold this information. Statistical information such as this can be found on the Office of Rail Regulation website
http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether the new East Coast Main Line franchise will be required to provide rail services to Hull; and if he will make a statement. [290051]
Chris Mole: Prior to the letting of a new franchise on the East Coast Main Line, the Government will consult on the new specification, including service levels and patterns. It is likely that the existing level of services provided by the franchised operator on the East Coast Main Line will form the basis of the draft specification.
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many rail passengers made at least one journey between Hull and London in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement. [290052]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport does not hold this information.
Rail journey statistics are published on the website of the Office of Rail Regulation at:
www.rail-reg.gov.uk
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate he has made of the cost of introducing a high-speed rail service between Leeds and Manchester via Huddersfield. [291797]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport has not carried out any work to estimate the cost of introducing a high speed rail service between Manchester and Leeds via Huddersfield.
High Speed Two has been asked to help consider the case for high speed rail services from London to Scotland and, as a first stage, the company will report by the end of this year with a detailed proposal for a new line between London and the west midlands. High Speed Two will also provide advice on the potential development of a high speed line beyond the west midlands, including the potential for the new line to extend to the conurbations of Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, the north-east and Scotland.
Mr. Sheerman:
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what research his Department undertook before the decision to change its policy on the number of road signs indicating
directions to sporting and cultural tourist venues; and what evaluation of the effect of the policy on traffic impact has been undertaken. [292514]
Mr. Khan: The Department for Transport does not have a policy on the number of traffic signs, including brown signs that direct visitors to their intended tourist destination. Although the Highways Agency's policy guidance documents on the use of tourist signing encourage highway authorities to consider the potential effects, no recommendation is made in relation to the number of signs.
Therefore no such research or evaluation has been undertaken.
The guidance documents TD52/04 (for the Highways Agency's all purpose and motorway trunk roads in England), and TA 94/04 (for local authorities in England on their local road network) can be found via the Highways Agencies website at:
http://www.highways.gov.uk/business/1162.aspx
Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when it was decided to require a 1.2 metre safety zone between a working area in respect of road maintenance and live traffic flow; what the evidential basis was for that decision; and if he will make a statement. [292158]
Mr. Khan: The 1.2 metre sideways clearance for roads with speed limits of 50 miles per hour and over has proved to be a practical and effective minimum requirement for many years, at least since 1965. The Department has no record of how the dimension was originally decided. Although the Traffic Signs Manual and the Safety Code of Practice have been reviewed, this distance has not been challenged by traffic management experts.
For roads with a lower speed limit, the size of the safety zone is reduced. The safety zone is only required when operatives are on site and it can be reduced when a site is unoccupied.
Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many (a) roadworkers, (b) pedestrians and (c) cyclists were (i) injured and (ii) killed on single carriageway roads where road maintenance or other road works were being undertaken, in each highway authority in each year since 1997. [292157]
Paul Clark: Data for roadworkers are not available but since 2005 the police have recorded whether pedestrians were injured in the course of 'on the road' work, which includes other workers such as those involved in traffic control, postal work and other delivery services as well as road maintenance, although this will only have been reported if it was immediately apparent to the reporting police officer.
A table showing pedestrians (i) injured and (ii) killed while in the course of work on single carriageway roads at sites where road works were being undertaken, in each highway authority in each year since 2005 has been deposited in the Libraries of the House.
Tables showing how many (b) pedestrians and (c) cyclists were (i) injured and (ii) killed on single carriageway roads at sites where road works were being undertaken, in each highway authority in each year since 1997 have also been deposited.
Mr. Illsley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether he has plans to improve road links to the Robin Hood Airport in Doncaster. [289497]
Mr. Khan: The Yorkshire and Humber Region’s advice on funding priorities, submitted in February included a scheme, promoted by Doncaster Metropolitan borough council, to improve road links to the Robin Hood airport in Doncaster.
The Department for Transport responded to the advice on 22 July 2009. It is now for Doncaster to submit a major scheme business case for the scheme to the Department at the appropriate time.
Jim Dobbin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport by what date he expects the 1,300 additional rail carriages announced in the 2007 Rail White Paper to be in operation. [289495]
Chris Mole: On 23 July the Government announced a major £1.1 billion programme of rail electrification. The Great Western Main Line between London and Swansea will be electrified by 2017, and the line between Liverpool and Manchester via Newton-le-Willow will be electrified by 2013.
This programme of electrification means that there will now be far less need for diesel trains and a greater requirement for electric trains. The Government will publish a new rolling stock plan this autumn, taking account of these changes circumstances and setting out a revised strategy.
Jim Dobbin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much money has been spent on new rolling stock in each of the last five years; and how much money has been spent on rolling stock for (a) Northern Rail and (b) each of the commuter rail operators serving London and the South East. [289494]
Chris Mole: The following table sets out the numbers and approximate value of the rolling stock for commuter operators serving London and the south-east.
| Train operator | Class | Ordered | Number of vehicles | Approximate value (£ million) |
There has been no new rolling stock procured by Northern Rail in the last five years, however Trans Pennine Express introduced a new fleet of class 185 diesel multiple units which entered service in 2005-06.
| Train operator | Class | Ordered | Number of vehicles | Approximate value (£ million) |
David Taylor: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when his Department plans to publish proposals for the regulation of smoking on (a) sea-going and (b) inland waterway vessels. [289174]
Paul Clark: The Department for Transport published a consultation exercise on draft merchant shipping (prohibition of smoking on ships) regulations on 9 July. The consultation closed on 9 October.
Ms Barlow: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport (1) what information his Department holds on the number of passengers starting their journeys from (a) Brighton and (b) Hove station who have used the South London Line in the last six months; [291677]
(2) how many passengers starting their journey from Aldrington Station have used the South London Line in the last six months. [291732]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport does not have access to the specific information you require. However, the number of journeys recorded via the rail industry Lennon ticketing system between Brighton, Hove and Aldrington stations and stations on the South London Line in the year 2008-09 was:
Brighton: 13,685
Hove: 2,348
Aldrington: 48
It is not possible to define whether all these passengers used the South London Line as other journey options exist (i.e. via the East Dulwich route). zonal travel cards are also not included in this figure as, by definition, they do not have a prescribed destination.
The introduction of East London line services to Clapham Junction will increase accessibility to South London line destinations for passengers from the South Coast.
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many speed cameras are operational on roads in Bolton. [291643]
Paul Clark: This information is not held by the Department for Transport. Since the 1 April 2007 the deployment of safety cameras has been the responsibility of individual local partnerships. The number of cameras in operation on roads in Bolton will therefore be a matter for the Greater Manchester road safety partnership.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 389W—continued
Mr. Drew: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what progress has been made on the re-doubling of the railway line between Kemble and Swindon. [292429]
Chris Mole: Network Rail has been funded by the Department for Transport, the South West Region and the National Assembly for Wales to undertake a comprehensive engineering study of the re-doubling proposal. The South West Region has been asked by Ministers to consider proposals that would fully fund the scheme and allow re-doubling work to start in 2010.
John McDonnell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport with which transport (a) authorities and advisory organisations, (b) companies and (c) trade unions his Department has had recent discussions on swine influenza; and when those discussions took place. [290017]
Paul Clark: We have maintained regular contact with a wide range of transport operators and associations since the outbreak was first notified. The Department for Transport has not discussed the issue with the trade unions. It is for individual companies to discuss any issues on this subject with their relevant trade unions.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what the Government's plans are to introduce a vehicle tracking and national road pricing scheme; what the most recent estimate is of the cost of such a scheme; what assessment he has made of the effects of such a scheme on (a) the environment and (b) civil liberties; and what the Government's policy is on the use of income from road pricing to fund public transport provision. [291558]
Mr. Khan: The Government will not proceed with a national road user charging scheme in the next Parliament.
However, road congestion remains a serious long-term problem and it would be irresponsible not to explore the potential of managing demand to help tackle congestion in the future.
Therefore, the Government remain committed to investigating thoroughly a wide range of policies both to reduce congestion and to improve journey-time reliability for all road users.
Given the complexity of the issues involved, the rapid pace of technological change and the number of potential variables, it is not feasible to give any cost and benefit estimates at this stage.
The Government do not generally hypothecate revenues, as to do so can be inefficient.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to his Department's publication, Supporting the Development of TIF packages, published on 4 March 2009, how much funding his Department plans to allocate to the Transport Innovation Fund in each year to 2018-19. [290158]
Mr. Khan: The Department for Transport announced on 4 March 2008 revised arrangements to support the development of congestion Transport Innovation Fund packages by local authorities who were considering bidding for funding to implement a package of measures to tackle congestion through demand management and investment in public transport in their area. The announcement noted our willingness to provide up to £200 million a year for such schemes up to 2018-19. Allocations would, however, depend on the scale and quality of proposals received. The Department's plans for spending beyond 2010-11 will be set as part of the usual cross departmental spending review process.
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport which major transport infrastructure projects in each (a) Government region and (b) local authority area have been approved by his Department in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [290053]
Mr. Khan: I have placed tables in the Library of the House which provides information on major transport infrastructure projects, costing over £5 million, in each (a) Government region and (b) local authority area where applicable that have been approved by the Department for Transport in each of the last five years.
Mr. Ronnie Campbell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what support his Department is planning to provide for the extension of the Tyne and Wear Metro from South Northumberland Park Metro station to Newsham in Blyth Valley; and if he will make a statement. [289373]
Mr. Khan: It would be for Nexus and Northumberland county council to consider whether the reopening of the railway line from Northumberland Park to Newsham either as an extension of the Metro or as a heavy rail line would be the best way to meet local and regional transport needs and to seek the necessary funding, for example through the Regional Funding Allocation (RFA).
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which body won the contract for the National Survey of Third Sector Organisations with the OGCbuying.solutions reference project 17576; what the monetary value of the contract is; and when the results of the survey will be published. [290141]
Angela E. Smith: The National Survey of Third Sector Organisations was let by competitive tender in two lots. Lot A was to provide a sample frame for the survey. Lot B was to conduct a survey of third sector organisations on that sample frame, conduct analysis and publish results.
Lot A was won by a consortium led by BMG Research, and Lot B was won by Ipsos MORI. The value of these contracts is commercially confidential and is not published to protect the commercial interests of the Cabinet Office in tendering similar work on a competitive basis.
A copy of the headline results of the survey have been placed in the Libraries of the House. The detailed results, together with analysis, are available at:
www.nstso.com
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will place in the Library a copy of the seating plan for the open plan office in the Downing Street office complex. [290133]
Angela E. Smith: I have nothing further to add to the answer my predecessor gave the hon. Member for Fareham (Mr. Hoban) on 3 February 2009, Official Report, column 1180W.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many staff work in the 10 Downing Street Correspondence Unit. [289855]
Angela E. Smith: As at 1 April 2009, 20 staff were employed in the Direct Communications Unit.
Mr. Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether the works in 10 Downing Street under Westminster city council planning application reference 09/00619/LBC have been completed. [287260]
Mr. Vara: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the rate of average earnings growth was in (a) North West Cambridgeshire constituency, (b) each local authority area in the East of England and (c) England in each of the last 10 years. [289299]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what the rate of average earnings growth was in (a) North West Cambridgeshire constituency, (b) each local authority area in the East of England and (c) England in each of the last 10 years. (289299)
ONS's primary indicator of average earnings growth is the Average Earnings Index. As this does not produce regional estimates, the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings has been used (ASHE). The ASHE, carried out in April each year, is the most comprehensive source of information on the levels of earnings in the United Kingdom. It is a sample of all employees who are members of pay-as-you-earn (PA YE) schemes.
The sample sizes for more detailed geographies can be small and this affects the quality of the resulting estimates, which are subject to a margin of uncertainty.
I attach a table showing the annual percentage change in median gross weekly earnings for the specified geographies for full-time and part-time employees in each year since 1998.
| Annual percentage change of median gross weekly pay—for full-time employee jobs( a) | |||||||||||
| 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 394W—continued
| Annual percentage change of median gross weekly pay—for part-time employee jobs( 1) | |||||||||||
| 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | |
| (a) Full-time employees on adult rates whose pay for the survey pay-period was not affected by absence. (x) Growth rate not shown due to unreliable levels of earnings estimates over the two years, either in one of the years or in both. Source: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Office for National Statistics. 1998-2008 | |||||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 396W—continued
Mr. Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what timetable she has set for consultation on a social investment bank. [287346]
Angela E. Smith: The Social Investment Wholesale Bank consultation, announced in Budget 2009, was launched on Wednesday 15 July. The consultation set out the vision, the economic case, and consulted on proposals for the design and functions of a potential bank. The consultation ran for a 12-week period and ended on 7 October in compliance with the Compact. This consultation will now inform substantive proposals to be developed by the Office of the Third Sector.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many staff maintain the Building Britain’s Future (a) website, (b) Twitter feed, (c) blog and (d) video feeds. [290283]
Tessa Jowell: The Building Britain’s Future website is maintained by one online editor who is responsible for (a) website, (b) twitter feed and (c) blog. Occasionally and infrequently this individual requires assistance in delivering (d) the video feeds. In these instances additional support is provided by one cameraman and two website development specialists. All of these staff are in-house Cabinet Office employees.
Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much the Central Office of Information has spent on acquiring online advertising space for the Building Britain's Future programme. [285142]
Angela E. Smith: I have asked the chief executive of the Central Office of Information to write to the hon. Member.
As Chief Executive of the Central Office of Information (COI), I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question on how much the Central Office of Information has spent on acquiring online advertising space for the Building Britain's Future programme to date (285142).
The final amount spent on this programme was £190.03.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent steps her Department has taken to increase participation rates in the (a) Capacity and (b) Future Builders scheme among charitable organisations in the East of England. [289241]
Angela E. Smith:
Capacitybuilders programmes in the East of England are promoted through events, e-bulletins and local consortia of support providers, such as councils for Voluntary Service. All consortia funded by Capacitybuilders in the region are now assessed as fit for purpose, which includes engaging with frontline groups and marginalised communities. Capacitybuilders
Regional Managers maintain local contacts. A network of five local delivery agencies promoted the Modernisation Fund grants stream through 11 events in the region, newsletters and networks.
Futurebuilders England (FBE) has taken steps to promote the Futurebuilders Fund in the East of England, including at events in Huntingdon and Clacton. Since the start of July, FBE has allocated a dedicated Business Development Officer to engage with the sector within the East of England region.
Capacitybuilders and FBE together are delivering the new £16.5 million Modernisation Fund. This was promoted at the Office of the Third Sector’s road show in Cambridge on 8 June 2009, attended by over 60 delegates from the region.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the criteria are for receiving funds from the Capacitybuilders Campaigning Research Programme. [292097]
Angela E. Smith: The Capacitybuilders Campaigning Research Programme will support organisations to take part in research about third sector campaigning. Criteria for the programme are:
Participants must be third sector organisations
Organisations must be small organisations with limited campaigning capacity
Organisations must be prepared to be involved in action learning (up to 10 days from October 2009 to March 2011)
Represent, support or champion the voice of a marginalised group or seek change on their behalf
Comply with the Charity Commission’s guidance on campaigning and political activity
Use campaigning methods which can help the sector learn more about effective campaigning. This may be a campaign
which is already running but could be improved by introducing new or different campaigning methods.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which organisations have been shortlisted for funding under the Capacitybuilders Campaigning Research Programme; and to fund what projects and initiatives such applications have been made. [292098]
Angela E. Smith: To date 49 organisations have been short listed for the Capacitybuilders Campaigning Research Programme. This was carried out by a selection panel, made up of third sector experts. The final programme will support around 30 organisations to participate in the research programme. Details of these organisations will be announced shortly, once the final selection process has been completed.
The programme will study, support and fund organisations through an action research programme to identify innovative ways for the third sector to campaign on behalf of disadvantaged people in society.
Joan Walley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what progress has been made on funding projects under the Capacitybuilders programme in (a) Stoke-on-Trent and (b) Staffordshire. [289769]
Angela E. Smith: Capacitybuilders is making good progress in investing across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent. Investments through a range of programmes during 2008-11 are listed in the following table. Note that many grants benefit both Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, for example, the consortium grants benefit a group of 13 local support providers from across the area, including the rural community council, many councils for voluntary service and specialist bodies for BME and faith groups.
| Programme | Recipient | Period of grant | Area of benefit | Grant amount (£) |
|
Lichfield and District Community and Voluntary Sector Support | ||||
|
Lichfield and District Community and Voluntary Sector Support | ||||
|
Real Help Now Modernisation Fund: Provisional Bursary Awards | ||||
|
Lichfield and District Community and Voluntary Sector Support | ||||
|
Lichfield and District Community and Voluntary Sector Support | ||||
| (1) 12 £1,000 bursaries. | ||||
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many foreign nationals who are not Commonwealth or EEA citizens are employed in the civil service and work in positions based in the UK. [281652]
Angela E. Smith: Data relating to the total number of non-EEA and non-Commonwealth nationals employed in the civil service and working in positions based in the UK is not held centrally by the Cabinet Office.
For data relating to the number of non-EEA and non-Commonwealth nationals employed under cover of aliens' certificate I refer the hon. Member to the
answer given to the hon. Member for Hendon (Mr. Dismore) on 22 July 2009, Official Report, column 700W, on Civil Servants: Foreign Workers.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham of 7 July 2009, Official Report, column 677W, on civil servants: pensions, if she will place in the Library a copy of the advice from Hewitt Associates Financial Services Limited on the reasons for which the Civil Service Additional Voluntary Contribution Scheme should withdraw from the Scottish Widows and Standard Life with-profit funds. [290287]
Angela E. Smith: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the right hon. Member for Horsham (Mr. Maude) on 7 July 2009, Official Report, column 677W.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the terms of reference of the Civil Service West Midlands Pilot are; and whether (a) civil servants and (b) other members of the public who live outside the West Midlands are eligible to apply for jobs in the pilot. [290153]
Angela E. Smith: The Civil Service West Midlands Pilot (CSWM) is a programme of work aimed at improving the culture, identity and brand of the civil service. Answerable through a cross-departmental board to permanent secretaries, it seeks to improve the visibility and attractiveness of the civil service to people from all backgrounds, and allow staff to develop their careers locally rather than having to move to London.
(a) The pilot requires that civil service organisations advertising vacancies in the region open these up to all employees who live or work there. It is a matter for departments and agencies themselves to decide whether any such vacancies will also be advertised to civil servants elsewhere, and on what terms. The pilot does not constrain any such activity.
(b) The pilot is aimed at ensuring the civil service in the region is managing its vacancies internally before going outside the service. Organisations will open their vacancies to members of the public if the internal process fails to yield a suitable candidate. Also, if Departments are conducting a larger scale recruitment campaign indicating a need to go simultaneously to the wider market, this will be done.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what preparations have been undertaken to ensure the continued effectiveness of the Civil Service in the event of an influenza pandemic. [290086]
Tessa Jowell:
All Government Departments have business continuity arrangements in place to address a wide range of scenarios as required under the Security Policy Framework. These plans focus on ensuring continued delivery of critical departmental activities, including at times of high staff absenteeism. To assist preparations,
Departments are receiving regular updates and briefings including revised planning assumptions for staff absenteeism which are also available to other employers on the Cabinet Office website.
Mr. Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what organisations have received funding from Communitybuilders; and for what purpose in each case. [287355]
Angela E. Smith: The Communitybuilders Programme has been open for applications since 7 September and applications received to date are being assessed. The fund remains open and for more information potential applicants can visit:
www.communitybuildersfund.org.uk
Mike Penning: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many cannabis-related deaths there were in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire in each of the last five years. [289419]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many cannabis-related deaths there were in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire in each of the last five years. (289419)
There were no deaths where the underlying cause was drug poisoning(1) and cannabis was mentioned on the death certificate, in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum local authority district or (c) Hertfordshire county, from 2003 to 2007(2,3) (the latest year available).
(1) Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10). Deaths were included where the underlying cause was due to drug poisoning (shown in the box below), and where cannabis was mentioned on the death certificate.
(2) Based on boundaries as of 2009.
(3) Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much her Department spent on newspaper advertising carried in each newspaper in the most recent year for which figures are available. [289512]
Angela E. Smith: As a number of recruitment adverts are placed as part of a whole advertising campaign (campaigns can include both on-line and newspaper adverts as well as the preparation of application packs, sifting and assessments) it would be possible to provide the information only at disproportionate cost.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 401W—continued
Greg Clark: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what steps have been taken to improve the thermal efficiency of the 11 Downing Street building in the last 12 months; [289784]
(2) what steps have been taken to improve the thermal efficiency of the 10 Downing Street building in the last 12 months. [289785]
Angela E. Smith: As part of repair and refurbishment works, the Cabinet Office has introduced a building management system and work is currently underway to replace old and inefficient heating plant with compact heat exchangers and condensing boilers. The cost of such repair and refurbishment work is published annually in the Cabinet Office accounts.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much her Department spent on hire vehicles in each of the last five financial years. [291703]
Angela E. Smith: Details of expenditure on hire vehicles are shown in the table:
| £ | |
Mr. Brady: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which Minister in her Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in her Department; whether her Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if she will make a statement. [289747]
Tessa Jowell: I am the Minister responsible for overseeing the delivery of value for money in the Cabinet Office.
The Public Services Unit was established in the Cabinet Office on 1 April 2009 to support the continued development of the Government’s strategy for reforming public services and embed it through workforce and service innovation. The Unit covers four main policy areas: strategic analysis; workforce reform; innovation; and service transformation. The Unit works closely with HM Treasury, the Prime Minister’s Delivery Unit and other parts of Cabinet Office, such as the Office of the Third Sector.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much her Department spent on (a) car hire, (b) train travel, (c) air travel, (d) hotels and (e) restaurant meals for (i) Ministers and (ii) staff in her Department in each of the last five years. [289969]
Angela E. Smith: It is not possible to readily identify from the Department’s accounting system how much was spent under the categories shown by Ministers and staff. This information is therefore available only at disproportionate cost.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many divorces have been concluded in each quarter of the last three years. [289319]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many divorces have been concluded in each quarter of the last three years. (289319)
The table below summarises divorces concluded in each quarter for 2005, 2006 and 2007; data for 2007 are provisional.
| UK Divorces by quarter 2005-07 | |||
| Quarters | 2005 | 2006 | 2007( 1) |
| (1) Provisional | |||
Divorces are tabulated according to date of decree absolute. The term ‘divorces’ includes decrees of nullity. The fact that a divorce has taken place in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland does not mean either of the parties is resident there.
In Scotland a small number of late divorces from previous years are added to the current year. Scotland are presently revising their divorce counts to exclude the late divorces from previous years (back to 1985). The changes will be small and will not affect UK trends over the time period in question. The new Scottish counts will be published by the General Register Office for Scotland (GROS) in their forthcoming Annual Report, due to be published on 7 August 2009.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent discussions she has had with domestic violence charities which have lost money as a result of the collapse of Icelandic banks; and if she will make a statement. [290501]
Angela E. Smith: I regularly meet with third sector organisations, including those working in the area of domestic violence. I have received no representations from these organisations regarding the impact of the collapse of Icelandic banks.
Mike Penning: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) how many (a) men and (b) women were in employment in Hemel Hempstead constituency in May in each year since 1997; [289440]
(2) how many people in Hemel Hempstead constituency have been claiming jobseeker's allowance for more than two years; [289439]
(3) how many and what proportion of young people aged between 18 and 24 years old resident in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire claimed jobseeker's allowance in (i) each of the last five years and (ii) 2009 to date. [289614]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Questions asking how many (a) men and (b) women were in employment in Hemel Hempstead constituency in May in each year since 1997; how many people in Hemel Hempstead constituency have been claiming jobseeker's allowance for more than two years; and how many and what proportion of young people aged between 18 and 24 years old resident in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire claimed jobseeker's allowance in (i) each of the last five years and (ii) 2009 to date. (289440,289439 and 289614)
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles employment statistics for local areas from the Annual Population Survey and its predecessor the annual Labour Force Survey (LFS) following International Labour Organisation (ILO) definitions. Monthly estimates are not available. Table 1 shows the number of men and women resident in Hemel Hempstead parliamentary constituency who were in employment in each year since 1997.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles the number of claimants of Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) from the Jobcentre
Plus administrative system. The number of persons claiming JSA in June 2009 for more than 2 years was 10.
Table 2 shows the number and percentage of 18 to 24 year olds claiming Jobseeker's Allowance in the requested areas. Percentages are not available for the Hemel Hempstead parliamentary constituency.
National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:
http://www.nomisweb.co.uk
| Table 1: Number of persons resident in Hemel Hempstead in employment | ||
| Thousand | ||
| 12 months ending | Male | Female |
| (1) Coefficients of Variation have been calculated for the latest period as an indication of the quality of the estimates. See Guide to Quality below. Guide to Quality: The Coefficient of Variation (CV) indicates the quality of an estimate, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality. The true value is likely to lie within +/- twice the CV—for example, for an estimate of 200 with a CV of 5 per cent. we would expect the population total to be within the range 180-220 Key Coefficient of Variation (CV) (%) Statistical Robustness * 0 = CV<5 Estimates are considered precise ** 5 = CV <10 Estimates are considered reasonably precise *** 10 = CV <20 Estimates are considered acceptable **** CV 20 Estimates are considered too unreliable for practical purposes Source: Annual Population Survey and Annual Labour Force Survey | ||
| Table 2: Number and percentage of 18 to 24-year-olds claiming jobseeker’s a llowance | ||||||
| Hemel Hempstead | Dacorum | Hertfordshire | ||||
| Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | |
| Note: Numbers rounded to the nearest five. Source: Jobcentre Plus administrative system | ||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 406W—continued
Mr. Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the (a) role and (b) remit of the Cabinet Office is in relation to resilience and civil contingency planning measures for an influenza pandemic. [287239]
Tessa Jowell: The Department of Health is the lead Department responsible for managing cross-government preparations for, and the response to, an influenza pandemic. The Cabinet Office supports this work by ensuring effective collective consideration of cross-cutting issues, as necessary. This is part of the Cabinet Office’s wider remit to build resilience and make Government work better by ensuring the coherence, quality and delivery of policy and operations across Departments and the wider public sector.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many and what proportion of people in each local authority area in England aged between (a) 18 and 24, (b) 25 and 30, (c) 31 and 40, (d) 41 and 50 and (e) 51 and 65 years claimed jobseeker’s allowance in each of the last five years. [289296]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many and what proportion of people in each local authority area in England aged between (a) 18 and 24, (b) 25 and 30, (c) 31 and 40, (d) 41 and 50 and (e) 51 and 65 years claimed jobseeker’s allowance in each of the last five years. (289296)
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles the number of claimants of Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) from the Jobcentre Plus administrative system. The requested age bands are not available, however figures are produced on a similar standard breakdown. Tables 1 to 5 show the number and proportion of people aged 18 to 24, 25 to 29, 30 to 39, 40 to 49, 50 to 59 and 60 and over resident in each local authority area in England who has claimed JSA in each of the last five years. As the information provided is extensive, a copy of the tables has been placed in the House of Commons Library.
National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:
http://www.nomisweb.co.uk
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will place in the Library a copy of the memorandum entitled Summer Recess circulated to Government departments. [290499]
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much each of the special advisers in (a) the Cabinet Office and (b) 10 Downing Street have claimed in expenses payments in the last 24 months. [290036]
Angela E. Smith: It is not possible to readily identify from the Department’s accounting system how much was claimed in expenses payments by special advisers in the last 24 months. This information is therefore available only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will review security arrangements for Ministers' (a) mobile telephones, (b) blackberrys, (c) home telephones and (d) personnel internet accounts in order to identify any areas of weakness. [288869]
Tessa Jowell:
The Security Policy Framework (SPF) published in December 2008 sets out mandatory minimum requirements for physical, personal and information/data
security that Departments and their agencies must adhere to. Departments develop local security policies based on the SPF, taking account of the particular risks faced by their organisation.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what her most recent estimate is of the number of people over the age of 65 years who died as a result of cold weather-related illnesses in the winter of (a) 2006-07, (b) 2007-08 and (c) 2008-09. [289646]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what the most recent estimate is of the number of people over the age of 65 years who died as a result of cold-weather-related illnesses in the winter of (a) 2006-07, (b) 2007-08 and (c) 2008-09. (289646)
The number of excess winter deaths in England and Wales,(1,2) of persons aged 65 years and over, for (a) 2006-07 was 22,550, and for (b) 2007-08 was 22,400(3) (the latest figures available).
It is not possible to say whether these deaths were related to cold weather. Also, there is no official definition of ‘cold-weather-related illnesses’, therefore deaths from all causes have been included.
(1) Estimates of excess winter deaths are based on the difference between the number of deaths during the four winter months (December to March) and the average number of deaths during the preceding four months (August to November) and the following four months (April to July).
(2) Figures are based on deaths occurring in each month.
(3) Figures for 2006-07 are final, figures for 2007-08 are provisional. Final figures are rounded to the nearest 10, provisional figures are rounded to the nearest 100.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what guidance has been issued to non-departmental public bodies in the last 12 months on undertaking expenditure in relation to conferences held by political parties; [290139]
(2) what guidance the Cabinet Office has given to non-departmental public bodies on attendance by staff of such bodies at conferences held by political parties. [290039]
Tessa Jowell: The Cabinet Office has issued guidance reminding Departments and non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) of the rules and principles governing NDPB attendance and activity at party conferences. Copies have been placed in the Libraries of the House.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proportion of all public appointments were advertised on the www.publicappts-vacs.gov.uk website in the latest period for which figures are available; and what guidance she has given to (a) Government departments, (b) executive agencies and (c) non-departmental public bodies on listing public vacancies on that site. [290038]
Tessa Jowell: The majority of public appointments are advertised on the Cabinet Office Public Appointment Vacancies website. Cabinet Office guidance is that all vacancies to posts regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments must be advertised on the site. This is also a requirement of the Commissioner’s own Code of Practice. It is the responsibility of the Commissioner for Public Appointments to monitor, and report on compliance with, her Code of Practice.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office with reference to the letter from the Cabinet Secretary to the right hon. Member for Horsham of 21 April 2009, whether the legal work in relation to the statement by the hon. Member for West Bromwich East in relation to the Red Rag website and Mr. Damian McBride was paid for from the public purse. [290041]
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 2 February 2009, Official Report, column 943W, on the Public Services Forum, whether minutes are kept of the meetings of the Public Services Forum. [290171]
Tessa Jowell: Notes are kept of Public Services Forum meetings. A note of the 5 March 2009 Public Services Forum has been placed in the Library of the House and published on the internet. Each further Public Services Forum meeting will be published on the departmental website.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many Tamils live in the United Kingdom. [291528]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many Tamils live in the United Kingdom. (291528).
The most reliable data on the number of people identifying as Tamil come from the 2001 Censuses in England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland - the numbers of people identifying in more recent surveys are too small to produce reliable estimates. Information for Scotland and Northern Ireland has been provided by their respective Registrars General.
None of the 2001 UK. censuses included a ‘Tamil’ tick-box in their ethnic group questions although respondents had the option to give an identity of their choice in one of the write-in spaces provided, if they did not believe that any of the given options was appropriate.
A total of 5,818 people in the UK used the write-in option to describe their ethnic group as ‘Tamil’ and a further 68,524 people wrote in that their ethnic group was ‘Sri Lankan’. It is not known how many of these Sri Lankans also have a Tamil identity.
Furthermore all the UK censuses included an ‘Indian’ pre-designated tick-box, which some respondents may have ticked without providing further information.
Nick Herbert: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what percentage of (a) all and (b) low income households spent more than 3 per cent. of their disposable income before housing costs on water and sewerage bills, in the latest period for which figures are available. [289682]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what percentage of (a) all and (b) low income households spent more than 3 per cent f their disposable income on water and sewerage bills, before housing costs, in the latest period for which figures are available. (289682)
he table below shows the percentage of UK. households with water bills greater than three per cent of disposable income in 2006/07. The table also shows the percentage of households where income is below 60 per cent of the median with water bills greater than three per cent of disposable income. For this estimate an average for the period 2004/05 to 2006/07 has been provided, due to small sample size. The information in this response is based on the Expenditure and Food Survey, which has a sample size of approximately 6,400 households in each year.
These estimates, as with any involving sample surveys, are subject to a margin of uncertainty.
| Percentage of households with water bills greater than 3 per cent. of disposable income( 1, )( 2 ) United Kingdom | |
| Percentage | |
| (1) Water bills include water, sewerage charges and water charges of a second home. (2) Disposable income is all income from: wages, self-employment income, occupational pensions, investment income, imputed income from benefits in kind, and state benefits after the deduction of income tax, employees' national insurance contributions and council tax. (3) 2006-07. (4) Average value for 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07. Source: Office for National Statistics from Expenditure and Food Survey | |
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will increase the strength of the Royal Military Police to meet demands to recruit and train the Afghan National Police. [291515]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The Royal Military Police currently provide six teams to train Afghan National Police in Helmand; we keep the size and number of these teams under review. We have no current plans to increase the size of the Royal Military Police in order to recruit and train the Afghan National Police.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers from Northern Ireland are serving in Afghanistan. [289289]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Data on the residential location of armed forces personnel are not held centrally and it is therefore not possible to provide figures for the numbers of service personnel serving in Afghanistan by country of residence.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he has had recent discussions with representatives of other nations engaged on military operations in Afghanistan on the effect of such operations on defence budgets. [289490]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: We regularly discuss with our allies the provision of resources for the ISAF mission and we continue to call on contributing nations, particularly our European partners, to share more of the burden in Afghanistan.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for changes to the number of British troops in Afghanistan in the next three months; and whether he expects the number of British troops deployed in that country to change as a result of the presidential elections in that country. [289491]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The Prime Minister will be making a full statement to Parliament on Afghanistan later this week, it would therefore not be appropriate for me to comment further on plans for troop levels before then.
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many helicopters of each type serving in Afghanistan have previously been used in operations in (a) the Falklands, (b) the First Gulf War and (c) Iraq. [289656]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The statistical information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The following table provides details on the helicopter types currently deployed in Afghanistan.
| Helicopter types used in: | |||
| Platforms currently serving in Afghanistan | (a) Falklands (1982) | (b) First Gulf War | (c) Iraq |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 411W—continued
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects the RAF Typhoon to be deployed to Afghanistan. [290066]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: There are no plans to replace the Tornado in Afghanistan for the foreseeable future.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will commission research into post-traumatic stress in pilots of unmanned aerial vehicles operating in conflict areas in Afghanistan. [291629]
Mr. Kevan Jones: MOD takes seriously the mental health of all armed forces personnel. The RAF Medical Services have not detected any instances of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, nor any acute stress reaction, in any UK pilot responsible for the operation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in Afghanistan. There are currently no plans to commission specific research into the mental health of these particular aircrew.
Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if his Department will make arrangements to embed the journalist Michael Yon with British forces in Afghanistan. [292511]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Any request by Michael Yon to embed with British forces in Afghanistan will be considered alongside other requests from the media, as was the case for his previous embeds.
He will ‘not’ be given special treatment, neither will he be disadvantaged by comparison with others.
Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the key user requirements relating to the current improvised explosive device threat in Afghanistan are, as used by his Department in the procurement of armoured fighting vehicles. [292512]
Mr. Quentin Davies: The requirements of vehicles for Afghanistan are primarily determined by the specific task the vehicle is to carry out and the threat it is expected to face. This means we need to find the right balance between capability, survivability, mobility and the physical protection that operational commanders demand. I cannot comment on the specific types and levels of protection, as disclosure could prejudice the security of the armed forces.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Royal Air Force shows there were in 2008; and how many he expects there to be in (a) 2012, (b) 2013, (c) 2014 and (d) 2015. [291513]
Bill Rammell: Three Royal Air Force shows were held in 2008, at Waddington, Leuchars and Cosford. The programme for Royal Air Force shows is decided on an annual basis. No decisions have yet been taken regarding shows for the years between 2012 and 2015. In addition to these Royal Air Force shows, the Royal Air Force provides assets for displays and flypasts at several hundred civilian and military events each year.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place a copy of the most recent (a) Chief of the General Staff’s Briefing Team, (b) RAF Personnel Liaison Team and (c) Navy Personnel Liaison Team report in the Library. [291569]
Bill Rammell: The most recent report compiled by the Chief of the General Staffs Briefing Team, that for 2008, was placed in the Library of the House in May 2009 and remains the most recently published at this time; a copy of the next report, due for publication in 2010, will be placed in the Library of the House when formally published.
The Royal Air Force Liaison Team was disestablished in 2005 and its last report, published in May 2004, was released into the public domain in late 2008; a copy of this report will be deposited in the Library of the House.
The Royal Navy’s Second Sea Lord’s Personnel Liaison Team was disestablished in late 2005 though a copy of its last report, published in May 2005, was released into the public domain in late 2008; a copy of this report will be deposited in the Library of the House.
Mr. Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many applications for armed forces resettlement grants have been refused on the basis of age-related eligibility in the last five years; [291707]
(2) when he next plans to review the age criteria for eligibility for armed forces resettlement grants; [291708]
(3) for what reasons service in the armed forces before the age of 18 does not count for gratuity purposes. [291709]
Mr. Kevan Jones: Age related criteria for the resettlement grant only apply to those service leavers who are members of the Armed Forces Pension Scheme (AFPS) 75 and there are no plans to review this at present. Under AFPS 75 there is a time served eligibility criterion of nine years from the age of 21 and for other ranks 12 years service from the age of 18. If these criteria are satisfied payment is made as soon after a discharge date as possible. No application for a resettlement grant is required, although a form is completed to confirm where payment is to be made. As a consequence none have been declined.
Reckonable service for other ranks was deemed to be from the date of joining or the age of 18 whichever is the latest. Historically, those who joined the armed forces under the age of 18 were boy soldiers, sailors, airmen or apprentices. They had rights to discharge prior to their 18th birthday different to those who were older. Conversion to reckonable service took place automatically for those that were serving on their 18th birthday. For officers, reckonable service commenced from age 21 to reflect the career pattern of those that normally joined after university. Like other ranks, officers who joined under the age of 21 had different conditions of service which automatically transferred to reckonable service on reaching their 21st birthday.
Following the introduction of Armed Forces Pension Scheme 05 on 6 April 2005, service personnel were given the option to transfer from AFPS 75 to the new scheme. For those that did and all new joiners to the armed forces, regardless of age, reckonable service commences from the date of joining. The time served criteria for resettlement grant of 12 years now applies to both groups and is widely accepted to be much fairer.
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel have been (a) killed and (b) seriously injured on active service in each of the last 30 years. [291801]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The number of service personnel who have died on active service (which is defined as military duty in an operational area) are set out in the following table:
| Number | |
Information on service personnel seriously injured prior to 2001 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Since 2001, the numbers of service personnel who have been very seriously, or seriously, injured while on active service in the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan are set out in the following table.
| All | VSI | SI | |
Mr. Newmark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of precision engineering equipment used by the armed forces is purchased from UK suppliers. [291676]
Mr. Quentin Davies: This information is not held in the format requested. It is, however, estimated that about 70 per cent. of MOD expenditure on precision instruments (e.g. medical instruments, scientific instruments, navigational instruments etc) is with companies where work was carried out in the UK, but not necessarily by UK-owned companies. This figure does not include expenditure on those contracts managed via British Defence Staff in the United States, activities subcontracted to industry by MOD Trading Funds or through international collaborative projects.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service families have been granted housing under shared equity schemes since the publication of Command Paper 7424. [291511]
Mr. Kevan Jones: This information is not held in the format requested.
The Key Worker Living programme in England is run on behalf of the Government by 23 regional “Homebuy Agents”. There is no requirement to advise the MOD of how many successful applications are from service families.
In Wales, the devolved administration does not record those in shared equity schemes who are members of service families.
Since August 2008 Scotland began collecting information of this type and to date there are 10 households where the shared equity buyer has declared themselves as being a member of the armed forces or a veteran. However, this may understate the position as not all buyers choose to return a form advising of their employment group in a timely fashion.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel had priority status under the Key Worker Living scheme in England in 2008. [291512]
Mr. Kevan Jones: Eligibility for Key Worker Status extends to all Regular Armed Forces personnel, including MPGS, MOD Police, Defence Fire Service and clinical staff in MOD medical establishments of all personal status categories. They retain their entitlement to Key Worker Status for the first year after leaving.
However, one of the criteria to be applied in determining key worker status is to have a household income of less than £60,000. While we can identify those service personnel who have a salary less than this amount we do not hold information on other income generated by the household.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 415W—continued
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will issue guidance on the use of military computer networks to access social networking sites. [291549]
Bill Rammell: The MOD has recently issued guidelines designed to help service and civilian personnel make full use of social networking sites while protecting their security, reputation and privacy. These guidelines apply to all use of social networking sites, whether accessed via MOD networks or otherwise, and are available at:
http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/AboutDefence/CorporatePublications/MediaandPublicCommunication Publications/OnlineEngagementGuidelines.htm
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many troops returning from (a) Afghanistan and (b) Iraq have been treated for (i) post traumatic stress disorder and (ii) drug and alcohol dependency in each of the last five years; [289532]
(2) what support is available for (a) soldiers and (b) veterans suffering from (i) post traumatic stress disorder, (ii) drug and alcohol dependency and (c) any other mental illness; and if he will make a statement. [289533]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The MOD’s Defence Analytical Services and Advice (DASA) organisation publishes statistics on new attendances to the MOD’s Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMH) in the UK Armed Forces Psychiatric Morbidity reports. Quarterly and annual reports for the whole of 2007 and 2008, and quarterly reports for January to March and April to June 2009, are now available both in the Library of the House and on the DASA website at:
www.dasa.mod.uk
Equivalent verified data prior to 2007 are not available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
MOD takes very seriously its responsibility to provide high-quality mental health care to its personnel. Diagnosis and treatment of mental health disorders in members of the armed forces are performed by trained and accredited mental health personnel. In Afghanistan, we deploy uniformed mental health nurses to provide in-theatre care and treatment for our personnel. If personnel need to leave the operational environment, then their care continues either on an out- or in-patient basis in the UK or their permanent base overseas.
In the UK, our mental health services for military personnel are configured to provide community-based mental health care, primarily through our 15 military Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMH) across the UK (plus centres overseas), which provide out-patient mental health care. The DCMH mental health teams, comprising psychiatrists, mental health nurses, clinical psychologists and mental health social workers, have particular expertise in treatments for psychological injury.
For the relatively small number of military patients who need it, in-patient care is currently provided by a group of seven NHS trusts located throughout England and Scotland, led by South Staffordshire and Shropshire NHS Foundation Trust (SSSFT) through a central MOD contract.
The Department has issued guidance to commanders on substance misuse and all three services have robust drug and alcohol policies in place. As such early intervention by the chain of command is likely to occur for disciplinary or welfare reasons before treatment by the Defence Medical Services would become necessary.
Service personnel identified by the chain of command as being at risk of alcohol misuse receive counselling and welfare support, this can include attendance on preventative early intervention programmes designed to alert them to the harm that alcohol can cause to themselves and others. More serious cases are treated through specialist medical and psychological treatment and rehabilitation, including where appropriate as in-patients.
Drug use is seen as being incompatible with military service and as such there is a zero tolerance policy which is reinforced by Compulsory Drug Testing (CDT). In the majority of cases a positive CDT result will lead to an immediate administrative discharge. In very exceptional circumstances service personnel may be retained if their drug use is considered to be uncharacteristic and their retention would be in the interest of the service. In these cases retention is subject to the successful completion of a special programme, which is designed to re-educate and give training in cognitive behavioural therapy.
When personnel leave military service their health care becomes the responsibility of the NHS. Ex-service personnel receive good treatment from their GPs but we recognise that many health professionals have limited experience of dealing with veterans who have mental health symptoms arising from their service experience. The MOD, the four health departments and the Combat Stress charity have been working together with clinical experts and the Health and Social Care Advisory Service (HASCAS) to develop a new model of community based mental health care that will address assessment and treatment of veterans’ mental health problems in the long term.
The community mental health model is NHS-led and reflects NHS best practice. Two-year pilots, tailored to local circumstances, are operating at Staffordshire and Shropshire Foundation Healthcare Trust, Camden and Islington Mental Health and Social Care Trust, Cardiff and Vale NHS Trust, Tees Esk and Wear NHS Trust, Cornwall NHS Partnership, and NHS Lothian (led by the Scottish Executive). Evaluation of the pilot areas is now under way; early results from all six are encouraging, with evidence that veterans feel able to access and use the service with confidence. Informed by the results of the evaluation the service will be rolled out across the UK. In the interim, for areas not yet involved in the pilots, veterans with operational service after 1982 who are concerned about their mental health can attend our Medical Assessment Programme based at St. Thomas’ hospital, for specialist mental health assessment by a consultant psychiatrist with extensive military experience.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department is taking to ensure the provision of suitable after-care for veterans of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan in respect of post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental illnesses; and if he will make a statement. [290408]
Mr. Kevan Jones:
Since 1948, it has been successive Governments’ policy that the NHS should be the main
provider of health care for veterans and for the majority of veterans their mental health needs are fully met by current NHS provisions.
The Department of Health and Devolved Administrations with support from the Ministry of Defence and Combat Stress have launched six mental health pilots around the United Kingdom. The aim of the pilots is to deliver a service which provides expert assessment and interventions and which is acceptable to veterans.
The early results from all six pilots are encouraging with evidence that veterans feel able to access and use the service with confidence. Evidence suggests that the presence of the pilots is making a difference to the local veterans’ communities.
Veterans who do not live near one of the regional schemes can access the Medical Assessment Programme (MAP) which is available to veterans who were deployed on operations since 1982. The MAP offers comprehensive physical and mental health assessments for veterans who feel that their ill-health may be linked to military service.
Mrs. Riordan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to monitor the implementation of the recruitment policy of the armed forces in respect of (a) people from black and minority ethnic backgrounds and (b) children of low-income households. [291875]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The armed forces aim to recruit the very best from all sectors of society regardless of ethnicity, religion, gender or financial standing. All three services have extensive programmes and dedicated teams to raise awareness of the armed forces in ethnic minority (EM) communities and to encourage recruitment. In partnership with the Equality and Human Rights Commission, we have set a target of 8 per cent EM representation by 2013. Our progress towards this target is continually monitored and published quarterly and can be found on the following website:
www.dasa.mod.uk
As at 1 July 2009, EM representation stood at 6.6 per cent.
There are no recruitment policies or targets set for the number of military personnel from low income households and such information is consequently not monitored.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a copy of the most recent Chief of the General Staff Briefing Team report. [289980]
Bill Rammell: A copy of the most recently published report, that for 2008, compiled by the Chief of the General Staff's Briefing Team was placed in the Library of the House in May 2009 and remains the most recent edition published. The next report is being complied for publication in 2010 and a copy will be placed in the Library of the House when formally published.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many and what proportion of personnel in the Army are deployable; [289981]
(2) how many and what proportion of personnel in the Army were deployable in each year since 2001. [289982]
Bill Rammell: The Army collates deployability figures for its deployable elements only, not its total trained strength.
The following table provides the information requested on a quarterly basis since March 2007. Figures before that date are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
| Date | Number of personnel within deployable units | Number of deployable personnel | Percentage of personnel deployable |
| Note: Personnel numbers are rounded to the nearest 10; percentages to one decimal point. | |||
Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make an assessment of the merits of deploying troops on the South Armagh border areas for the purpose of preventing attacks by dissident republican groups. [291651]
Bill Rammell: No. The safety and security of the people of Northern Ireland is the responsibility of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). In a written ministerial statement released on 8 December 2008, Official Report, column 28WS, following the end of Op Banner my predecessor stated
“The Armed Forces will continue to provide support to the PSNI and contribute to civil contingencies where required through normal procedures for military aid to the civil authorities in the UK.”
Clare Short: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many settlements of what monetary value his Department has paid to members of the armed forces in each age group in relation to combat stress following service in Bosnia and Kosovo; how many claims for such settlements are outstanding; and if he will make a statement. [291947]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The number of claims settled and outstanding together with the amount of compensation paid including legal costs is shown as follows:
| Number settled | Compensation paid (£ million) | Number outstanding | |
The age of those service personnel at the date of settlement of their claims ranged from 32 to 46. The age of the one outstanding claimant is 44.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will discuss with his US counterpart the development of a hyper-sonic mass technology joint capability. [291755]
Mr. Quentin Davies: The MOD's research into hyper-sonic mass technology ended in 2005 and it was determined that the technology did not offer cost effective alternatives to current capabilities. This position was reiterated in section B7 of the “Defence Technology Strategy,” published October 2006 of which a copy is available in the Library of the House. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence will not be raising this issue with his US counterpart, Secretary Gates.
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a copy of the report by Bernard Grey on defence procurement. [289808]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Bernard Gray's Review of Acquisition will be published once it has been finalised, following which I shall place a copy of the report in the Library of the House.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he plans to publish the Bernard Gray report on his Ministry’s equipment programme. [291570]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The report is expected to be published in the autumn.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department spent on newspaper advertising carried in each newspaper in the most recent year for which figures are available. [289513]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The Department is unable to provide this information as it is not held in the format requested. However, I refer the hon. Member to the answer the Minister for the armed forces gave on recruitment advertising on 23 February 2009, Official Report, columns 23-4W, to the hon. Member for North Devon (Nick Harvey).
12 Oct 2009 : Column 420W—continued
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much has been paid by his Department in legal costs to (a) the solicitor Phil Shiner and (b) public interest lawyers since 2001. [289809]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Specific data on the expenditure by the MOD on all legal costs paid to claimants’ solicitors is not held centrally and therefore could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's (a) civilian and (b) military manpower capitation rates are. [289984]
Bill Rammell: A copy of the 2009-10 average yearly capitation rates for industrial and non-industrial civilian staff, members of the MOD Police Service, MOD Police and Guarding Agency and military personnel of the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, Army and RAF has been placed in the Library of the House.
Capitation rates are used mainly for charging other Government departments, foreign governments and the private sector. Average capitation rates are not generally used for military ranks above colonel and equivalent as any calculations would be based on actual rates for greater accuracy.
The rates are an average of the attributable direct employment costs that include: salary and pay related elements national insurance contributions and superannuation charges and indirect administrative costs borne by the Department. The rates do not include individual allowances.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many staff there were in (a) his Department's predecessor in 1997 and (b) his Department on the latest date for which figures are available. [292060]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The following table shows how many staff there were in the Ministry of Defence on 1 April 1997 and 1 August 2009.
| Thousands FTE( 1) | ||
| 1 April 1997 | 1 August 2009 | |
| (1) Full-time Equivalent FTE is a measure of the size of the workforce that takes account of the fact that some people work part-time. Actual hours worked are used; the average hours worked by pan-timers is about 60 per cent. of full-time hours. (2) Due to ongoing validation of data from the Joint Personnel Administration System, Service strength statistics for 1 April 2007 onwards are provisional and subject to review. | ||
Comparative data for the time periods between 1 April 1997 and the current data can be found at the following website:
http://www.dasa.mod.uk/modintranet/UKDS/UKDS2009/c2/table201.html
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 25 November 2008, Official Report, column 1171W, on departmental marketing, how many staff in his Department were responsible for branding activity in 2008-09; and what the cost of employing such staff was in 2008-09. [290218]
Mr. Kevan Jones: In the financial year 2008-09 seven members of staff had some responsibility for brand management issues as part of their wider duties in the central MOD Media and Communication organisation.
The total cost of these seven staff was £363,000 based on average capitation rates. Only a small proportion of this cost is attributable to brand management activities. It is not possible to say how much as the time spent varies from week to week.
Some Defence Agencies, Top Level Budget areas, Trading Funds, Joint Headquarters, single Service Commands and some military units also have individuals whose responsibilities include brand management. This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department spent on hire vehicles in each of the last five financial years. [291598]
Mr. Quentin Davies: Expenditure on short term hires of passenger cars for the last five financial years through the UK White Fleet contract is provided in the following table.
| Financial year | Amount (ex-VAT) £ million |
Expenditure on short term hires of passenger cars for the last two financial years, through the British Forces Germany White Fleet contract is provided in the following table.
| Financial year | Amount (ex VAT) £ million |
This data has been rounded to approximate figures.
Data prior to this is held in hard copy and could only be analysed and provided at disproportionate cost.
Expenditure on other overseas car hire, booked through MOD's Defence Travel Cell, has only been recorded since April 2008 and amounted to some £1.2 million (ex-VAT) in FY 2008-09.
Hires through Government Procurement Cards, MOD Agencies such as the Defence Support Group, Met Office and the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory and overseas dependencies fall outside the scope of White Fleet contracts and have separate local arrangements. These details are not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
Mrs. Villiers:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 12 May 2009, Official Report, column 747W, on departmental official
hospitality, how much his Department spent on entertainment and hospitality in (a) each year from 1997-98 to 2006-07 and (b) 2008-09. [290178]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The MOD has spent the following on entertainment and hospitality.
| £ million | |
These figures include expenditure by the Defence Agencies, but not by the MOD's Trading Funds and Executive Non-Departmental Bodies, which lie outside the MOD's accounting boundary.
Expenditure on entertaining and hospitality is incurred according to business need and is subject to prior approval and compliance with departmental rules and the principles of propriety set out in Managing Public Money and the Treasury's handbook on Regularity, Propriety and Value for Money. Departmental-level information on expenditure on entertainment and hospitality has been routinely published for many years, including in our annual report and accounts. From 2008-09 this information is shown broken down between “Other Administration Costs” (in Note 10a) and “Other Programme Costs” (in Note 10b).
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289743]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The Under-Secretary of State, my hon. Friend the Member for North Durham (Mr. Jones) has been appointed Value for Money Minister for the Ministry of Defence in response to the announcement about the Organisational Efficiency programme made in the 2009 Budget.
The Ministry of Defence is committed to delivering greater value for money, strengthening its governance and working more closely with both other Departments and the centre of Government to achieve this. The Ministry of Defence Annual Report and Accounts 2008-09 described the wide range of programmes in place to deliver efficiency and value for money savings. A specific public service reform team has not been formed and the work is coordinated by the Defence Board and the Value for Money Minister.
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change on the estimated cost of incorporating a surge protection device in a typical electricity generating station; and what assessment he has made of the likely effectiveness of such a device. [289835]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Assessments on the threats faced by electricity generation and distribution in the UK, and advice on proportionate protective measures, are provided by the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure (CPNI) in close consultation with the energy sector and the Department for Energy and Climate Change, rather than the Ministry of Defence.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many British armed forces (a) Chinook and (b) Apache attack helicopters are stationed in the Falkland Islands. [290379]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: There are no Chinook or Apache attack helicopters stationed in the Falkland Islands.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for the size of the complement serving at the military garrison on the Falkland Islands. [291756]
Bill Rammell: There are some 1,250 UK armed forces personnel based in the South Atlantic Islands, the majority on the Falkland Islands, supported by a small detachment based on Ascension Island. This figure varies during the year due to individual posting plots and unit moves. Force levels are subject to regular review, the last having completed in July 2009, but there are no current plans to change them.
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the outcome was of the discussions on the A400M aircraft with EU partner nations in July 2009. [291557]
Mr. Quentin Davies: A number of discussions were held with partner nations during July 2009. The culmination of these was the announcement at the ministerial meeting on 24 July 2009 that the UK agreed to join Partner Nations in a negotiation phase to determine the way ahead for the A400M programme.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects the A400M to enter service with the Royal Air Force. [291762]
Mr. Quentin Davies:
The UK has joined Partner Nations in a negotiation phase with Airbus Military. The purpose of these discussions—which are not expected to conclude before the end of this year—is to determine the way ahead for the A400M programme, including
revised aircraft production and delivery schedules. Until these discussions are complete, it is not possible to provide definitive dates. The current planning assumption is late 2014.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department’s document, The Future Nature of War. [289986]
Bill Rammell: There has been a range of work on the character of future conflict conducted within the MOD. Key findings will be incorporated within the Defence Green Paper that will be published in early 2010.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for the replacement of the Gazelle fleet of helicopters on reaching its out-of-service date. [290329]
Mr. Quentin Davies: We have recently extended the out of service date for the Gazelle from 2012 to 2018. This change to our planning assumptions is based on a revised assessment of the need to provide a capability in support of domestic commitments, and can be safely provided from the remaining fatigue life of the airframes. This decision has no impact for operations in Afghanistan as the Gazelle is not used in the battlefield helicopter role; its former battlefield communications and ISTAR roles are all now performed by other helicopters and non-rotary wing assets.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment. [288904]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: I do not currently plan to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what (a) office and (b) technical premises in Greater London his Department owns. [289985]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The following list provides the office premises in Greater London the Department owns.
6 - 8 Palmer Street
Army Career And Information Office, Wembley
Horse Guards, Whitehall
Ministry of Defence Main Building
Old War Office, Westminster
12 Oct 2009 : Column 425W—continued
The Citadel
It is not possible to separately identify from centrally held records those sites which might be regarded as technical from other sites. However, the other sites that the Department owns in Greater London are provided as follows:
48 Hornton Street
ACTon Territorial Army Centre (TAC)
Aylward Air Training Corps (ATC)
Balham TAC
Barking Army Cadet Force (ACF) HUT
Barking ATC HUT
Barking ATC Store
Barnet ACF HUT
Barnet TAC
Battersea ATC
Bethnal Green ACF
Bexleyheath TAC
Blackheath TAC
Brixton TAC
Buckhold Road ACF
Camberwell TAC
Catford ACF
Catford TAC
Cavalry Bks Hounslow
Charlton ACF
Chiswick ACF
Clapham TAC
Crayford ACF
Croydon Reme Workshops
Croydon TAC
Dagenham ACF
Dagenham ATC
Dalston ACF
Defence Geographic Centre Feltham
Ealing Cadet Centre
East Ham Infrastructure
East Ham TAC
East Ham Tri Service Cadet Centre
East Ham Utilities
Edgware TAC
Elmbridge ACF
Elmgrove Road ACF
Eltham ACF
Epsom ACF
Erith ACF
Feltham ACF
Finchley Cadet Centre
Fulham TAC
Grove Park TAC
Hainault ACF
Hammersmith Road WETC Includes ACF/ATC
Hampstead TAC
Harrow ATC
Harrow School Combined Cadet Force (CCF)
Heston ATC/ACF Centre
Highgate Old Guard House
Highwood Barracks TAC
HMS Wildfire
Honeypot Lane TAC
Hornsey TAC
Hounslow ACF
Hyde Park Bks
Ilford Joint Cadet Centre
Ilford TAC
Inglis Barracks Mill Hill
Iverna Gardens
Kenley Airfield ATC
Kenley Airfield Enclave ATC
Kensington TAC
Kingston Upon Thames TAC
Lower Site Green Hill ATC
Lytton Grove ACF
Marlpit Lane TAC
Mercator House
Merton ACF
Merton Road TAC
Mile End Road TAC
Mitcham Road TAC
Orpington ACF
Orpington Nissen HUT
Penge ACF
Penge Mt Garage
Permanent Joint Hq Northwood
Queen Mary Bldgs Westminster
RAF Bentley Priory
RAF Kenley
RAF Uxbridge
Regents Park Bks
Rochester Row
Romford TAC
Royal Marine School Of Music Kneller Hall
Saram House and Latimer House Kensington
Sidcup ACF
St Johns Hill TAC
Stoke Newington Joint Cadet Centre
Sutton TAC
TAC Islington
The Keep Kingston
Torquay Street ATC
Tottenham ACF
Twickenham ACF
Uxbridge TAC
Victoria House Westminster
Wallington ACF
Walworth TAC
Wellington Bks
Wembley ACF Building
Wembley ATC Auxiliary HUT
Wembley ATC HUT
Wembley Nissen HUT Rifle Range
West Ruislip/Blenheim Crescent
Whipps Cross TAC
White City Road TAC
Willesden ACF HUT
Wilsons Grammar School
Woolwich Barracks
Worship Street TAC
Miss Widdecombe: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he plans to amend the terms and conditions of the Gurkha pension scheme; and if he will make a statement. [289998]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The Ministry of Defence has no reason, or plans, to amend the terms of the Gurkha Pension Scheme (GPS), which is now a closed scheme. New entrants to the Army join Armed Forces Pension Scheme (AFPS) 2005. The MOD will continue to operate the present GPS for those 25,000 members in the scheme.
The GPS was designed for retirement in Nepal and provides an income that equates to a good working wage there. Gurkhas who served as members of the GPS were able to retire on an immediate pension after only 15 years service, at an age as young as 33 years. They may therefore receive benefits under the scheme for many years while still of working age. The early age from which Gurkhas take their pension compared with their British counterparts means that over a lifetime most Gurkhas will receive equivalent or better pension value than those in AFPS 75.
The value of the GPS pension has been maintained over time through annual uplifts for inflation in Nepal and by reference to the Indian Central Pay Commission 10-yearly reports. Gurkha pension rates are maintained at levels that are at least double the rates of the Indian Army pension scheme.
Gurkha soldiers today serve on the same terms and conditions of service as the wider Army. Gurkhas who served on or after 1 July 1997 have also been given the option to transfer to the AFPS and many have chosen to do so. Service on or after 1 July 1997 was given a year-for-year value, while service before 1 July 1997 was converted using an actuarial factor to give broadly equivalent pension value in AFPS for that period. This is normal practice across the public sector for those transferring between pension schemes.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the trained strength of the Royal Marines was (a) in 1997 and (b) on the latest date for which figures are available. [289983]
Bill Rammell: In April 1997 the trained regular strength of the Royal Marines including the general, band and career services was 6,060. The most recent trained regular strength figures, as of August 2009, was 6,840.
Dr. Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps have been (a) identified and (b) taken to improve the Met Office's business model as a consequence of the conclusions of the Operational Efficiency programme; and if he will make a statement. [289291]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The Operational Efficiency programme (OEP) Review of the Met Office has not yet concluded. Work is now under way on the next steps set out for the Met Office review in the OEP final report published in April 2009. Progress will next be reported at the pre-Budget report 2009.
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent assessment his Department has made of the accuracy of long-range weather forecasts by the Met Office; and if he will make a statement. [291504]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The Met Office is a World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) designated centre for long-range forecasts and carries out assessments of its forecasts using procedures required by WMO. The most recent assessment for the Europe/UK region was carried out in September 2009.
There are limits on predictability at long-range, however seasonal forecasting is a developing science and the Met Office expects substantive improvements to follow from current research programs. Results show that, for the Europe/UK region, forecasts correctly discriminate below or above normal temperature and rainfall levels by about 60 per cent. of the time, with percentages somewhat better for temperature. This reflects state-of-the-art skill for seasonal forecasting in the extratropical regions and is thus similar to that available from other leading WMO centres.
The nature of influences on seasonal conditions means that forecast skill is considerably higher in tropical regions than in the middle latitudes. This has led to use of Met Office global forecasts by many National Met Services worldwide, including in climate vulnerable regions such as parts of Africa.
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost to the public purse has been of the (a) operation and (b) staffing of the Met Office in the last 12 months for which figures are available. [291665]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The Met Office is a trading fund and provides weather and climate services under contract to a range of Government and commercial customers. In 2008-09, revenue from these services, including maintenance of the underpinning infrastructure, amounted to £184.8 million, of which £150.7 million was from Government customers. Staff costs were £84 million. The Met Office returned a dividend of £17.2 million to MOD in relation to this period.
Independent research has shown Met Office services for the public provide excellent value for money and an exceptional return on investment, creating value to the UK economy in excess of £600 million per year.
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reasons his Department provides funding for the Met Office to make weather forecasts; if he will assess the merits of privatising the Met Office; and if he will make a statement. [291666]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The Met Office provides crucial support to the armed forces, advising on the impacts of weather and other environmental factors on operations and developing cutting-edge technology to assist with decision-making and provide a battle-winning edge in theatre.
In addition, the MOD provides funding on behalf of Government for the Met Office to deliver the UK's Public Weather Service (PWS).
The asset management and sales strand of the Operational Efficiency Programme (OEP) is examining a number of assets, including the Met Office, to consider the potential for alternative business models, commercialisation, new market opportunities, and where
appropriate, alternatives to public ownership. An update on progress will be provided with the 2009 pre-Budget report.
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make an assessment of the merits of linking the amount of funding allocated to the Met Office to the accuracy of its forecasts. [291667]
Mr. Kevan Jones: There are no current plans to make an assessment of the merits of linking the amount of funding allocated to the Met Office to the accuracy of its forecasts.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department is taking to increase retention and recruitment rates of aircrew personnel in the UK armed forces. [290354]
Mr. Kevan Jones: Currently, within the armed forces, the level of aircrew manning is sufficient to meet the tasks that they are required to undertake. The outflow rates of aircrew are constantly monitored and the inflow is carefully matched to ensure that there are always enough aircrew. There remain, however, a number of specific areas of concern.
Financial retention incentives (FRIs) represent an important mechanism to achieve manning levels. There is an existing £50,000 FRI payable to eligible Royal Navy (RN) and Royal Air Force (RAF) career stream senior officer aircrew with an additional £50,000 payable to RN and RAF career stream senior officer pilots only.
Other recruitment and retention measures include the professional aviator pay spine which enhances the pay and terms and conditions and specialist pay (SP). SP is subject to quinquennial review, as part of a rolling programme.
Generally, across the services, recruitment of aircrew is healthy. However, within the Naval Service various forms of advertisements have been used. For example, the Royal Navy screened a television advertisement campaign for pilots incorporating an online game which simulated an aircrew aptitude test. Within the Army and RAF, recruitment of aircrew is robust and no specifically targeted recruitment initiatives are currently running for aircrew.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 430W—continued
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he plans to purchase additional helicopters to assist military operations in (a) Afghanistan and (b) elsewhere. [290374]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Over the next 10 years, the Ministry of Defence intends to invest some £6 billion in its helicopter capability, including procurement of the new Lynx Wildcat, which we confirmed in December last year, and the purchase of additional lift helicopters.
This is a significant investment that will modernise and enhance our helicopter fleet, making it more suitable for extreme conditions such as hot temperatures, high altitudes and challenging operational conditions experienced in Afghanistan. Alongside investment being made from
the reserve, this funding is already helping enhance our Merlin, Chinook and Lynx Mk9 fleets making them more suitable for deployment in Afghanistan. This investment will, by May 2010, allow us to double the number of UK battlefield helicopters in Afghanistan and increase the number of flying hours by more than 130 per cent. compared to November 2006. We constantly keep this situation under review.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent assessment he has made of the effect on armed forces running costs of increasing the number of helicopter platforms and reducing the variety of aircraft. [290380]
Mr. Quentin Davies: The Department recognises the potential cost savings that might result from reducing the number of fleets operated and instead investing more in fewer aircraft types. These benefits include an overall reduction in the fixed costs of delivering our helicopter capability and the opportunity to maximise the return on investment on the training and support arrangements of retained types.
Achieving such rationalisation is a key objective, although we are clear that it must not be achieved at the expense of support to current operations.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many hours training (a) on computer-based simulators and (b) in the air are required to qualify pilots for (a) Merlin, (b) Chinook and (c) Puma helicopters. [292327]
Bill Rammell: The table shows the number of hours of simulator and flight training required for each pilot undergoing Operational Conversion Flight (OCF) training for Merlin, Chinook and Puma. Each pilot will also fly additional hours undertaking co-pilot responsibilities, both on the simulator and in the aircraft. Pilots also undergo computer based training and computer aided instruction lectures and briefings as part of Ground School training.
| Dedicated hours: Minutes | Additional hours: Minutes | ||||
| Aircraft type | Simulator | Aircraft | Simulator | Aircraft | Ground School (days) |
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the capacity of RAF Benson to train and retrain helicopter pilots is: and what such capacity exists elsewhere in the UK. [292328]
Bill Rammell: RAF Benson trains pilots on Merlin and Puma Operational Conversion Flights (OCF). The normal throughput of pilots on Merlin OCF is 16 pilots and four refresher pilots per year. However, in order to increase the Merlin force to 35 crews by 2010 the throughput is currently 24 pilots and four refresher pilots undergoing Merlin OCF training per year.
16 pilots and up to 15 refresher pilots undergo Puma OCF training at RAF Benson per year.
Similar training takes place at other air bases across the UK according to helicopter type. Chinook OCF training takes place at RAF Odiham. Sea King pilots undergo conversion training with 848 Naval Air Squadron at RNAS Yeovilton. Army pilots undergo Conversion To Type training onto Lynx, Gazelle and Bell 212 with 671 Squadron and onto Apache with 673 Squadron at Middle Wallop. Apache pilots then go on to Conversion To Role training with the Air Manoeuvre Training and Advisory Team at Wattisham Station.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent assessment he has made of the merits of using commercial facilities for initial training of military helicopter pilots. [292329]
Bill Rammell: Initial helicopter training for all three Services is provided by the Defence Helicopter Flying School (DHFS) at RAF Shawbury. A civilian contractor already provides helicopters, flight simulators, air engineering, test flying functions and an element of flying instruction. Military flying instructors are also provided by members of the armed forces. The mix of military and contractor-provided instructors is kept under regular review, taking account of requirements.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what additional investment has been made in the spare parts inventories for (a) Merlin and (b) Chinook helicopters in 2008-09; and what additional investment is planned for 2009-10. [292331]
Mr. Quentin Davies: An additional Merlin (multi-aircraft) deployable spares pack was delivered in 2008-09 and further investment has been made in additional stock for deployment in Afghanistan, for which deliveries will be completed in 2009-10. Total costs to date are in the region of £18 million.
For Chinook, £19 million has been invested in the procurement of additional spares for support to operations in Afghanistan during FY 2008-09 and the first half of FY 2009-10. Spares purchased by Boeing Ltd. as part of broader support for the Chinook fleet are not included in the above.
Mr. Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much aid and how many staff the Government contributes to the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence in Estonia. [292500]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The United Kingdom is fully supportive of this Estonian-hosted Cyber Defence initiative and their endeavours in this important area. However, given the need to coordinate Cyber Defence with a number of other Government Departments and Allies, our preferred means of support is by participation in specific mutually beneficial workstreams rather than attach personnel permanently to Estonia.
Both the current Head of the MOD Defence Security and Assurance Service and his predecessor, as well as other Senior Officers, have visited the Co-operative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence, participated in their conferences, and provided additional assistance to its development.
Clare Short: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 9 September 2009, Official Report, column 2000W, on helicopters: Nepal, (1) what the terms of reference were of the investigation; and what the length and cost was of that investigation; [292129]
(2) what allegations were investigated by the Police Fraud Squad. [292130]
Bill Rammell: Detectives from the Ministry of Defence Police Fraud Squad (MDPFS) Anti Corruption Unit began a criminal investigation in June 2007 and delivered their findings in April 2008.
Was there any criminality evident in the procurement and gifting of the helicopters, by any UK MOD, overseas personnel, or contractors involved in the procurement process?
Was there any misappropriation of Government funds?
Were the procured helicopters value for money in respect of Government Funds being used for purchase?
The cost of this investigation, which ensued as a result of an inquiry made by the Defence Fraud Analysis Unit in August 2007, was £500, covering travel and expenses incurred, but not salary costs. The costs of salary relating to this investigation are not held centrally and cannot be provided.
Clare Short: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 9 September 2009, Official Report, column 2000W, on helicopters: Nepal, from what country the helicopters were purchased; and through what agency the purchase was organised. [292131]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: In August 2002, the Directorate of Overseas Military Activity (DOMA) appointed Crown Agents to act for and on behalf of HM Government. The helicopters were procured from a company in Belarus.
Clare Short: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 9 September 2009, Official Report, column 2000W, on helicopters: Nepal, what conclusion was reached by the investigation on whether (a) the new production model M1-17s were delivered to the Royal Nepal Army and (b) the mainframe numbers and the numbers in the aircraft logbooks matched. [292132]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The investigation stated that two helicopters were procured and gifted to the Government of Nepal in accordance with the Letter of Agreement, and that the Royal Nepal Army became the end user of the helicopters. The two helicopters were not new production models, but they had been subject to a complete overhaul prior to purchase and subsequent gifting to the Government of Nepal.
The investigation found that there was no evidence to suggest that the mainframe numbers and logbook numbers did not match, and that all logbooks and service records were signed as correct on date of purchase.
Clare Short: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 9 September 2009, Official Report, column 2000W, on helicopters: Nepal, whether the Police Fraud Squad made any recommendations as a result of the investigation. [292133]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: With the investigation concluding that there was no evidence of criminality in the procurement and purchase process of these helicopters, nor any misappropriation or misuse of UK Government funds, the Ministry of Defence police fraud squad made no recommendations.
Mr. Davidson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what changes there have been to the UK's deployable nuclear capability in each year since 1997. [289987]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Since before 1997 the UK has operated a fleet of four ballistic missile submarines. One submarine is on patrol at all times, providing Continuous At Sea Deterrence (CASD). In 1997, the fleet was completing a transition from the Resolution class to the Vanguard class; this transition was complete when the fourth Vanguard class, HMS Vengeance, achieved full operational status in early 2001.
The WE177 free-fall nuclear bomb was withdrawn from service in 1998.
The 1998 Strategic Defence Review concluded that the UK needed a stockpile of fewer than 200 operationally available warheads, a reduction of a third from the maximum of 300 announced by the previous Government. The December 2006 White Paper: The Future of the United Kingdom’s Nuclear Deterrent (Cm 6994) announced a further reduction in our holdings of operationally available nuclear warheads, in line with the UK’s commitment to maintain only the minimum necessary deterrent; we now have fewer than 160 operationally available nuclear warheads.
On 24 September, the Prime Minister announced in his speech to the United Nations Security Council that, subject to technical analysis and progress in multilateral negotiations, when the next class of submarines enters service in the mid-2020s, the aim is for the UK to deliver CASD from a fleet reduced in size from four to three.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many convoys transporting nuclear weapons have used roads in Scotland in the last five years. [289531]
Mr. Quentin Davies: It is Ministry of Defence policy not to comment upon the frequency or routes used by the convoys, as to do so would, or would be likely to, prejudice national security. Nuclear weapon convoy movements, however, are kept to the minimum necessary to maintain the operational effectiveness of the UK’s nuclear deterrent.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his most recent assessment is of the performance of the upgraded Puma helicopters in combat operations. [290381]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth:
The Puma medium support helicopter will be fitted with new engines and modern avionics. Our assessment is that this upgrade will provide
a step change in the Puma’s capability, providing enhanced performance in the toughest and most demanding conditions.
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department spent on the development of the UK Air Surveillance Command and Control System in (a) 2006, (b) 2007 and (c) 2008. [291972]
Mr. Quentin Davies: Spend on the Concept and Assessment Phases of the UK Air Surveillance Command and Control System (UKASCACS) project in the financial years in question are as follows:
| Financial year | Cost (£ million) |
In 2008 the project was extended and redirected into the Air Command and Control Future Capability (AC2FC). The monies spent previously are contributing to the ongoing development of this project which will provide a more effective capability for UK.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many combat-ready Chinook helicopters are stationed at RAF Odiham. [290376]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: There are 26 Chinook helicopters in the Forward Fleet available to the Front Line Command for operational and training purposes. This includes those based at RAF Odiham for training, trials and other UK defence tasks.
I am withholding the number of helicopters we have deployed as release would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of our armed forces.
Mr. MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what appraisal his Department has made for future uses of the Hebrides Range. [291721]
Mr. Quentin Davies: We expect that the Hebrides Range will continue to provide an important service in support of the development, testing, evaluation and operation of missile systems, unmanned air vehicles and other weapons. Accommodation facilities at the range will also continue to be available to support training activities.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 435W—continued
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions he has held with his Ukranian counterpart on Ukraine's application to join NATO. [291754]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth:
I have had no discussions with my Ukrainian counterpart on NATO membership. Both our predecessors, the right hon. Des Browne and His Excellency Yekhanurov, met twice in 2008. They discussed
the continued UK's strong support to Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic aspirations and Ukraine's involvement in International Peace Support Operations, including NATO in Afghanistan.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish the conclusions of research on the combat effectiveness of miniature unmanned aerial vehicles in conflict zones. [291630]
Mr. Quentin Davies: I am withholding the information as its disclosure would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether the Franco-British Nuclear Forum remains operational. [289889]
Mr. Kidney: In April 2009 it was agreed between representatives of the British and French Governments that the Franco-British Nuclear Forum had achieved its objectives of exploring aspects and conditions of nuclear energy in the context of the new nuclear build programme in the UK. Therefore, given the high quality of existing bilateral cooperation between the British and French nuclear agencies it was also agreed that the forum should be brought to a formal close.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 26 March 2009, Official Report, column 709W, on the Renewables Advisory Board, when he expects to finalise the Renewables Advisory Board budget for 2009-10. [290132]
Mr. Kidney: We expect the budget for the Renewables Advisory Board (RAB) to be finally agreed in the early autumn.
I can however confirm that for the three months April to June the spend for RAB was £36,257.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment he has made of progress at EU level on the development of mandatory sustainability criteria for biofuels. [289775]
Mr. Kidney: The EU Renewable Energy Directive, published in June this year, includes mandatory sustainability criteria for biofuels. The directive is subject to a comitology process which will include clarifying key aspects within the sustainability criteria for biofuels; we expect these discussions to take place towards the end of this year. The directive is due to be transposed into national law by December 2010.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (1) pursuant to the answer of 10 March 2009, Official Report, columns 399-400W, on the Carbon Trust: public relations, if he will ask the Board of the Carbon Trust to publish details of payments it has made to (a) Fishburn Hedges, (b) Grayling Political Strategy, (c) Weber Shandwick Public Affairs and (d) Citigate Public Affairs in each of the last five years; [290497]
(2) pursuant to the answer of 17 March 2009, Official Report, column 999W, on the Energy Saving Trust: public relations, if he will ask the board of the Energy Saving Trust to publish details of the payments it has made to (a) Positif Politics Ltd., (b) Strategen, (c) Weber Shandwick Public Affairs and (d) Consolidated Communications in each of the last five years. [290498]
Joan Ruddock: I do not intend to do so. Operational decisions are a matter for the trusts, and the release of these details is therefore a matter for their boards. However, I understand that both Carbon Trust and Energy Saving Trust would be happy to discuss these issues with you, and I suggest that you contact the chair of each trust if you wish to take up that offer.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his latest estimate is of the Government's carbon footprint. [288714]
Ian Pearson: I have been asked to reply.
Government are committed to achieving a reduction in the carbon dioxide emissions from its estate of 12.5 per cent., and from administrative road travel by 15 per cent., both by 2010-11. Progress against these targets is reported annually in the Sustainable Development in Government report. This latest assessment of performance, published in December 2008, shows that emissions from the office estate in 2007-08 were 2,642,623 tonnes of C02, and emissions from administrative road vehicles were 148,762 tonnes. These represent a reduction of 6.3 per cent. and 10.3 per cent. respectively against the 1999-2000 baseline year. Departments separately reported data on air travel to the Government Carbon Off-setting Fund (GCOF) to comply with the mandate to off-set all international air travel.
The Government delivery plan for sustainable operations and procurement shows that Government have plans in place to achieve the further reductions required by 2010-11.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he is taking to improve cross-departmental working on building a low carbon economy. [289822]
Joan Ruddock: In July the Government published the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan, which set out the UK’s strategy for making the transition to a low carbon economy. Responsibility for delivering the strategy is shared across Government, and DECC is working closely with other departments to ensure the measures set out in the Transition Plan and associated documents are delivered effectively.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the reduction in carbon dioxide emissions attributable to from the Carbon Trust's local authority carbon management programme. [289878]
Joan Ruddock: Based on implementation so far, the Carbon Trust estimates that the programme has helped local authorities to save 1.6Mt CO2 on a lifetime basis.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what representations he has received from the National Insulation Association on changes to the Carbon Emission Reduction Target scheme and specification of non-physical methods of emission reduction. [291772]
Joan Ruddock: Government consulted earlier this year on amendments to the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target. In taking final decisions, we took account of a broad range of views, including those of the National Insulation Association. Amendments came into force in July 2009 acting to increase the target by 20 per cent., increase the innovation ring-fence, remove non-retail CFL schemes as eligible and provide up-front scores for behavioural measures, namely real time displays and home energy advice. Given that behavioural measures were new to CERT we capped their promotion at 2 per cent. of a suppliers target and required they only be deployed following a direct request from a householder.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Carbon Emissions Reduction scheme in (a) 2002 to 2005, (b) 2005 to 2008 and (c) 2009. [291773]
Mr. Kidney: The primary aim of the Carbon Emission Reduction Target (CERT, 2008-11) is to reduce carbon emissions in the household sector to contribute to national and international climate change targets. CERT and its predecessor the Energy Efficiency Commitment (EEC, 2002-08) has shown to be very effective, with EEC saving some 3.2 million tonnes of CO2 annually by 2008 and CERT expected to add a further 5.6 million tonnes of CO2 savings by 2011. This mechanism has also proved to be very effective at getting measures into homes—for instance, some six million households have benefited from subsidised or free insulation since 2002, one million of these in the first year of CERT alone. Independent analysis has also demonstrated that this has been achieved cost-effectively—through EEC householders are receiving ongoing benefits in the form of reduced energy bills and increased comfort with a net present value of £8.2 billion.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the Prime Minister’s announcement of 26 June 2009 of a $100 billion per year fund to help developing countries reduce their emissions, what proportion of this fund the Government expects to contribute; and from which budget this funding will be made. [289687]
Joan Ruddock: The UK wants all countries except the least developed to contribute to climate financing. The UK is arguing for an objective, transparent way of working out which countries should contribute using criteria such as ability to pay (GDP) and responsibility (emissions).
We expect a significant portion of the $100 billion figure to be generated by a reformed and expanded global carbon market. Revenues generated by the carbon market are heavily dependent on the mitigation ambition of a global deal, so we are simultaneously pushing for a high ambition deal at the Copenhagen summit in December.
The UK has proposed that some climate finance can come from official development assistance where it clearly meets both poverty reduction and adaptation or mitigation objectives. However, in the UK we will limit such expenditure to up to 10 per cent. of our official development assistance. We are working towards this limit being agreed internationally.
The rest would come from a combination of new and additional sources of finance. The UK would be willing to support the approach proposed by Norway, which is an ‘automatic’ mechanism for generating predictable and credible flows of international public finance by auctioning a small proportion of international emissions allowances.
A decision has not been made about which budget this funding will be made from. The UK has pledged to pay its fair share of climate finance, but the exact proportion the UK Government expect to contribute are contingent on the deal at Copenhagen.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the Prime Minister's announcement of 26 June 2009 of a $100 billion per year fund to help developing countries reduce their emissions, whether he expects to achieve a global agreement on this proposal (a) before the Copenhagen summit and (b) at the Copenhagen summit. [289688]
Joan Ruddock: The aim of the Prime Minister's announcement was to move the debate from hypothetical figures to negotiation on actual mitigation actions and contributions. The UK wants all countries except the least developed to contribute to climate financing. The $100 billion figure includes carbon market revenues, up to 10 per cent. of official development assistance and a combination of new and additional sources of finance; the UK is willing to support an “automatic” mechanism auctioning a small proportion of international emissions allowances, as proposed by Norway.
The UK has been working towards a global agreement on the principles set out in the Prime Minister's announcement, using all available international negotiations and near-negotiations fora. The initiative has enabled the UK to show leadership and provided an opportunity to push for strong progress on climate finance. The international response has been positive, both from developing countries such as The Maldives and Rwanda, as well developed countries such as Australia. Recently, the Prime Minister was invited by President Obama to give a presentation on the UK initiative at the Major Economies Forum. We will continue to work closely with EU and international colleagues in the coming months in order to reach a global agreement on finance at the Copenhagen summit.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent steps the Government has taken to encourage households to reduce their carbon dioxide emissions. [291534]
Mr. Kidney: On 11 September 2008 my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced a major boost to our energy efficiency programme, building on an already ambitious package of measures.
The announcement included a significant increase in the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) obligation on suppliers, demanding additional energy supplier investment of some £560 million in household energy efficiency—taking overall supplier investment to almost £3.4 billion over the three years of the scheme to 2011. Overall, we expect the scheme to benefit around 6 million households with significant energy saving measures such as insulation, while millions more will benefit from energy efficient lights, high efficiency appliances and energy saving devices.
In addition, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced a new Community Energy Savings Programme which is now in operation delivering an estimated £350 million of measures to reduce the carbon emissions and fuel bills of 90,000 households in vulnerable low-income communities.
The Department of Energy and Climate Change also grant funds the Energy Saving Trust (EST) to support its work reducing carbon emissions from the household sector. Through the Government funded ACT ON CO2 advice line and regional one-stop shop advice centres, the EST works directly with consumers to help them reduce their carbon footprint with respect to energy, waste, water and transport. In 2008-09 the EST advised over 1.3 million consumers through their advice centres.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent estimate he has made of the amount of revenue which will arise from the sale of allowances through the Carbon Reduction Commitment scheme in each of the next five years. [289892]
Joan Ruddock: There will be no net revenue raised by the sale of Carbon Reduction Commitment allowances because all the money collected in the sale will be returned to participants according to how well they reduce their emissions.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the Statement of 23 April 2009, Official Report, column 382, on coal and carbon capture and storage, how much he estimates the proposed financial mechanism will raise in each year up to 2020. [289751]
Mr. Kidney:
The amount that will be raised under the levy each year will depend on a number of factors including the rate at which projects come forward, the number of projects supported at any time and the cost
of each project, which will vary dependent upon a number of factors including technology type, installed capacity, operational performance and location.
The impact assessment which is part of our consultation, “A Framework for Cleaner Coal”, published on 17 June provides an estimate of the costs of CCS demonstration under an illustrative scenario up to 2032.
The scenario is based on up to four CCS demonstration projects, one of 300MW and three of 450MW capacity receiving support for up to 15 years. The total cost of support that would be provided from the levy is estimated to be £5.2 — £9.0 billion.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much the Government has spent on developing carbon capture and storage technology to date. [289851]
Mr. Kidney: Between 1997 and 2009 the Government spent £77.9 million on the research and development of Carbon Abatement Technologies, including Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS). Spend for CCS technologies only is not available.
This comprises spending under the UK’s Clean Coal Programme administered by the former Department of Trade and Industry, the Technology Strategy Board (TSB), the UK Research Councils and the Environmental Transformation Fund (ETF) Carbon Abatement Technology Demonstration Programme.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the budget of the Carbon Trust was in (a) 2007-08, (b) 2008-09 and (c) 2009-10; what it is planned to be in 2010-11; and how much of that funding was from his Department in each year. [289722]
Joan Ruddock: The Carbon Trust is a private company and receives income from a number of sources.
The amounts grant funded by DECC (and previously by DEFRA and by DTI/BERR) to the Carbon Trust in 2007-08 and 2008-09 are as follows:
| £ million | ||
| DEFRA/DECC | DTI/BERR | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 441W—continued
In 2009-10, the Carbon Trust will receive up to £84.53 million in core grant funding from DECC. The trust will also receive up to £121.6 million of additional funding in 2009-10 specifically to deliver low interest loans to small and medium enterprises and public sector bodies (through Salix Finance), as announced in Budget 2009. The trust may also receive further funding for specific activities from the low carbon investment funding announced in Budget 2009.
The trust’s budget for 2010-11 has not been finalised as this forms part of DECC’s wider decisions on funding allocations.
Joan Walley:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what funding the Carbon Trust has provided for (a) local authorities, (b) NHS bodies,
(c) higher and further education institutions and (d) other public bodies in (i) Stoke-on-Trent and (ii) North Staffordshire in the last 12 months. [291802]
Joan Ruddock: The Carbon Trust has worked with a range of public sector organisations in Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire including schools, local authorities and NHS organisations to provide carbon management and energy efficiency advice.
The Carbon Trust has advised me that it is not possible to provide a funding breakdown for these specific locations.
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what methodology his Department used to (a) establish that adopting its proposals to the UN framework on climate change would restrict temperature rises to below two degrees Celsius and (b) calculate that expenditure of US$100 billion per annum was required to tackle climate change globally. [291397]
Joan Ruddock [holding answer 16 September 2009]: We have used the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report as a primary reference for relating global emissions to our 2°C goal. We have also extensively used the Stern Review. In addition the Government are funding a major research programme on the science of climate change called the AVOID programme. AVOID is a DECC/DEFRA funded research programme led by the Met Office in a consortium with the Walker Institute, Tyndall Centre and Grantham Institute. For further information see:
http://www.avoid.uk.net
We have drawn on analysis in various independent reports to calculate the scale of finance needed to tackle climate change in developing countries. The most recent, by Project Catalyst (a philanthropically funded project to develop analysis for the UNFCCC), put the total at €65-100 billion per year on average from 2010-2020 (€55-80 billion mitigation; €10-20 billion adaptation). The figure that the Prime Minister announced in a speech on 26 June 2009 of around $100 billion by 2020 is within this range. However, we also recognised that we must distinguish between research studies and the actual finance that countries might need for their low carbon and climate resilient growth and development. Therefore, we have proposed $100 billion a year by 2020 as a working figure for the world to focus on.
Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department has made of changes to average global temperature since 2000. [292447]
Joan Ruddock: Observations collated at the Met Office Hadley Centre and the university of East Anglia Climate Research Unit indicate that global average near-surface temperatures during each of the years 2000 to 2008 inclusive, relative to the late 20th century (1961 to 1990) average of 14.00°C, were: +0.24, +0.40, +0.45, +0.46, +0.43, +0.48, +0.42, +0.40, and +0.31°C. Thus, the average for this period was 0.40°C warmer than that in the late 20th century.
Eight of the 10 warmest years on record all occurred between 2000 and 2008. It should be noted that short timescale (year-to-year to decadal) natural fluctuations in temperature are superimposed upon the long-term underlying warming trend.
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will seek to place on the agenda of the forthcoming Copenhagen Conference the subject of assistance to Bangladesh to cope with the effects of climate change. [291271]
Joan Ruddock [holding answer 16 September 2009]: In the climate negotiations in Copenhagen in December the UK Government will be striving to ensure that the poorest and most vulnerable nations, like Bangladesh, receive the help they need to adapt to the impacts of climate change. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has called for significant climate finance for developing countries to be part of the Copenhagen deal, with a significant proportion of public finance going to support adaptation for the poorest and most vulnerable countries.
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether he plans to lead the Government’s delegation to the UN Framework Conference on Climate Change negotiations in Copenhagen in December 2009; what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change on steps to secure an international agreement at the Copenhagen conference; and if he will make a statement. [291398]
Joan Ruddock: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change will lead the UK delegation when he goes to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties in Copenhagen this December. Getting a deal at Copenhagen is a priority for the Government and the Prime Minister has said that if it is necessary to secure agreement in Copenhagen, he will personally go to achieve it.
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which Ministers and officials from his Department participated in the UN Secretary General’s high level event on climate change in New York on 22 September 2009; and if he will post on his departmental website each paper distributed at the meeting. [291621]
Joan Ruddock: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State, supported by two DECC officials, participated in the UN Climate Change summit.
All papers distributed at the summit can be found on the UN website:
http://www.un.org/wcm/content/site/climatechange/lang/en/pages/2009summit
Charles Hendry:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 25 June 2009, Official Report, column 66WS, on the road to Copenhagen (public
awareness), how many copies of the pamphlet are to be printed; how those copies are being distributed; and what the cost of the preparation and publication programme is. [289598]
Joan Ruddock: I can confirm that the overall cost of the Road to Copenhagen leaflet was approximately £34,000 exclusive of VAT. This includes design, typesetting, printing and distribution of 46,000 copies. The leaflet is being distributed in hard copy or electronic format to a range of outlets, including educational establishments, public libraries, citizens advice bureaux, trade unions, business-related outlets, MPs and other key stakeholders.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment he has made of the likely effects of climate change on (a) Hertfordshire and (b) the South East in the next 10 years. [289428]
Joan Ruddock: In 2005, the regional climate change partnerships, working with the UK Climate Impacts Programme, published ‘Measuring Progress’. The report assessed the impacts of climate change by region, including the East and the South East, and included some indicative assessments of the impacts on activities from climate change.
On 18 June 2009, the Government published the latest UK Climate Projections. These projections show the potential changes in climate for the UK for a range of probabilities, climate variables and emissions scenarios. Results can give detail down to a 25 kilometre square grid. This data are freely available to all to make their own assessments of the likely effects of climate change. To support organisations in using the projections, the Government are providing a training package, Projections in Practice, which includes a programme of events in each region. Regional events have been organised in coordination with regional climate change partnerships. The events in the East of England will be held from 12-16 October 2009, and the events in the South East of England are from 2-6 November 2009.
Looking to the future, work has now begun on the first statutory national Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA), to report by January 2012. All regions will have an important input.
Alongside this work, the Government have now begun the Adaptation Economic Assessment, which will analyse the high level economic costs and benefits of adapting to climate change in the UK. The project will include information by English region, but not by individual county boundary. It is also due to report in 2012.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he plans to take to assist people in (a) Hertfordshire and (b) the South East to adapt their domestic circumstances to take account of the effects of climate change. [289443]
Joan Ruddock:
The aim of the Government’s Adapting to Climate Change Programme is to help people adapt to the effects of climate change by providing robust evidence on the effects of climate change and embedding adaptation into policies, plans and programmes. The
programme seeks to achieve this by building capacity in organisations who are the most able to take long term adaptation decisions. This includes local Government via mechanisms such as National Indicator 188—Planning to Adapt to Climate Change—within the local Government performance framework to enable them to support individuals to adapt to future climate changes through local programmes.
On 18 June 2009, the Government published the latest UK Climate Projections. These projections show the potential changes in climate for the UK for a range of probabilities, climate variables and emissions scenarios. This data are freely available to all to make their own assessments of the likely effects of climate change. To support organisations in using the projections, the Government are providing a training package, Projections in Practice, which started in July and runs until March 2010. The programme includes a series of national events for specific sectors and also includes, from September, a programme of events in each region, including the South East and East of England.
To support adaptation locally and regionally, the Government have established a local and regional programme managed by a board of key local and regional organisations. The South East regional partnership, Climate South East, is represented on the board, as are regional climate change partnerships as a whole. The board manages a small programme of projects to develop guidance and tools to help local authorities, regional climate change partnerships and others to support communities to take account of the effects of climate change.
The Climate Change Partnership for the East of England has been working closely with representatives from Hertfordshire. It has had particular advice and support from the sustainability team at Hertfordshire county council in shaping and defining the partnership and its work programme activities.
Further information on the board and the Government’s Adapting to Climate Change Programme is located on the Programme website at:
www.defra.gov.uk/adaptation
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his Department's estimate is of the annual level of emissions of (i) carbon dioxide, (ii) nitrous oxide and (iii) sulphur hexafluoride of the proposed new coal-fired units at Kingsnorth. [289875]
Mr. Kidney: The Department has made no such estimate.
E.ON estimate that for 12TWh of electricity, the most likely production maximum, 8.6MTe of CO2 would be produced. No estimate has been made for the annual level of emissions of nitrous oxide or sulphur hexafluoride.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many coal health compensation claims have been made by each solicitors’ firm on behalf of claimants resident in Bassetlaw constituency who are potentially eligible for a services claim. [292004]
Mr. Kidney: The number of coal health compensation schemes that were eligible for services claim is shown in the following table as at 4 October 2009. The figures include services claim made under chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and vibration white finger.
| Claimants’ Representatives | Location | Number of claims | Claim eligible for services | Claim eligible for services that have been settled |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 449W—continued
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many (a) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and (b) vibration white finger coal health compensation claims submitted in (i) Bassetlaw and (ii) the UK have been disputed. [292005]
Mr. Kidney: The number of claims for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) claims with a schedule 20 dispute and Vibration White Finger (VWF) claims with a formal dispute under the terms of the Claims Handling Agreements in Bassetlaw and the UK is shown in the following table as at 4 October 2009:
| Bassetlaw constituency | Other UK constituencies | |
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many Smith v. Manchester awards have been made to residents of Bassetlaw constituency represented by each solicitors' firm. [292006]
Mr. Kidney: The number of awards for Smith v. Manchester for Vibration White Finger (VWF) under the Coal Health Compensation schemes made to former coal miners and their families at Bassetlaw constituency broken down by claimants' representative is shown in the following table as at 4 October 2009.
We are unable to provide the awards for Smith v. Manchester paid under Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease scheme as these figures are included within the schedule 11 calculations under the term of the Claims Handling Agreement, and it is not possible to isolate them.
| Claimants' representative | Location | Number of VWF claims awarded Smith v. Manchester |
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many Smith v. Manchester awards have been paid to claimants represented by the 50 solicitors’ firms which have submitted the highest number of claims under the coal health compensation scheme. [292007]
Mr. Kidney: The number of Smith v. Manchester awards made to claimants represented by the 50 claimants’ representative who have submitted the highest number of claims under the coal health compensation scheme is shown in the following table as at 4 October 2009.
We are unable to provide the awards for Smith v. Manchester paid under chronic obstructive pulmonary disease scheme as these figures are included within the schedule 11 calculations under the term of the Claims Handling Agreement, and it is not possible to isolate them.
| Claimants’ representative | Location | Claims awarded Smith v. Manchester |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 452W—continued
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what performance targets have been set for the Chief Executive of the Committee on Climate Change. [289752]
Joan Ruddock: The performance targets set for the chief executive of the Committee on Climate Change, in respect of 2008-09 and 2009-10, are in summary:
2008-09: Provide high quality analysis to support CCC decision making; deliver advice on carbon budgets within statutory deadline based on a robust analytical framework and evidence base; develop a medium term vision through a three-year business plan for sustained high impact of the CCC; effectively maintain relationships across Whitehall and with external stakeholders; work closely with CCC members to provide support and agree advice; ensure that the work programme is on track and within budget; ensure that human resources are used to their full potential.
2009-10: Deliver a high quality progress report to Parliament in Autumn 2009 which impacts Government strategy for delivery of carbon budgets; deliver analytically robust review of UK aviation emissions setting out appropriate contribution from aviation to meeting the UK's long term target by December 2009; agree with the Committee a forward work plan for the period October 2009-December 2010; support the establishment of the Adaptation sub-Committee; play a leading role in representing the Committee externally; maintain effective communications with external stakeholders; work closely with CCC members to provide support and agree advice; ensure that the work programme is on track and within budget; ensure that human resources are used to their full potential.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many members his Department's Delivery and Strategy High Level Board has; and on what dates the Board has met since his Department was established. [289643]
Joan Ruddock: The Delivery and Strategy High-Level (DASH) Board has 17 full members covering eight Government departments with an interest in energy and climate change issues.
Since DECC was established in October 2008, the Board has met eight times:
17 October 2008
6 November 2008
12 December 2008
29 January 2009
19 March 2009
7 May 2009
18 June 2009
23 July 2009
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much his Department spent on newspaper advertising carried in each newspaper in the most recent year for which figures are available. [289509]
Joan Ruddock: On the Department’s key public campaign, ACT ON C02 we have spent approximately £1.6 million on newspaper advertising, between September 2008 and July 2009. The following tables outline spend by newspaper title. Figures are quoted exclusive of VAT.
| September 2008 to March 2009 | |
| Totals (£) | |
| June and July 2009 | |
| Totals (£) | |
Details of DECC’s recruitment advertising is as follows.
| £ | ||
| Adverts | Ratecard cost | Cost to DECC( 1) |
| 10% off Guardian | ||
| Adverts | Cost to DECC( 1 ) (£) |
|
Policy Manager (Grade 7) 11554 / Senior Policy Advisers 11555 (SEO) | |
| (1) 10 per cent. off Guardian | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 455W—continued
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much electricity was consumed by his Department's air conditioning system in the last 12 months. [289882]
Joan Ruddock: The Department meters and monitors total electricity consumption, but the electrical consumption of the Air Conditioning cannot be monitored separately because it uses many different elements of the building's Mechanical and Electrical infrastructure and so no separate records are kept.
However, the Department is exploring the use of an auto monitoring of the electrical consumption for the individual floors (both essential and none essential supplies), which will include individual items of plant such as Chillers, pumps, lifts etc. This new system may be operational within a month.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 26 March 2009, Official Report, column 704W, on departmental reorganisation, when he expects the second phase of his Department’s staff moves into 3 Whitehall Place to (a) begin and (b) be completed. [290128]
Joan Ruddock: The Department’s second phase of staff moves is expected to begin in November 2009 and be completed in December 2009.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 26 March 2009, Official Report, column 704W, on departmental reorganisation, how many of his Department's London-based staff were based in premises other than 3 Whitehall Place on completion of the first phase of moves of his Department’s staff. [290129]
Joan Ruddock: The number of London-based staff based in premises other than 3 Whitehall Place on completion of the first phase of moves was approximately 25.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 26 March 2009, Official Report, column 704W, on departmental reorganisation, how many staff moved into 3 Whitehall Place as part of his Department’s first phase of staff moves. [290130]
Joan Ruddock: The Department moved approximately 973 staff into 3 Whitehall Place as part of the first phase of staff moves.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will place in the Library a copy of the (a) display energy certificate and (b) advisory report for public buildings issued in respect of each property occupied by (i) the Energy Saving Trust and (ii) the Carbon Trust. [289841]
Joan Ruddock: Neither the Carbon Trust (CT) nor the Energy Savings Trust (EST) are required to have display energy certificates or associated advisory reports for public buildings. However, as would be expected, both CT and EST have taken steps to identify the energy performance of their buildings.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what percentage of employees in his Department (a) are on a flexible working contract, (b) are on a job share employment contract and (c) work from home for more than four hours a week. [287088]
Joan Ruddock:
Information on the numbers of civil servants from this department that are (a) on a flexible working contract, (b) are on a job share employment contract and (c) work from home for more than four
hours a week are not held centrally and details could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
The Department supports a range of flexible working methods including, job sharing and working from home.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what conferences his Department is planning to hold in each of the next 12 months. [289893]
Joan Ruddock: The conferences we are currently planning to hold in each of the next 12 months are listed in the following table. Officials in my Department attend and speak at many conferences organised by others and we do hold a wide range of other events to engage with the public and specific stakeholders in order to inform and further the work of the Department.
| Conference | |
|
Eight to 10 Low Carbon Buildings Programme Extension regional Roadshows | |
|
Launch event for a European Investment Bank intermediate lending scheme for renewables | |
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 20 April 2009, Official Report, column 306W, on departmental public relations, what the value of his Department's contract with Kreab Gavin Anderson (a) was in 2008-09 and (b) is in 2009-10. [289535]
Joan Ruddock: The Kreab Gavin Anderson contract is for up to £320,000 for the period 9 May 2008 to 31 March 2010 inclusive. The contract is to provide expert advice on the impact of proposed policy changes on renewable finance and investment prospects, as well as a range of briefing, seminars, meetings and wider awareness raising with investors and trade media, on developments in renewable energy policy.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether representatives of his Department have had correspondence with (a) Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd, (b) Eastern Petroleum Corporation Ltd, (c) African Minerals Ltd, (d) Landis+Gyr and (e) Energy Enterprises Ltd since the creation of his Department. [289933]
Mr. Kidney: Since the creation of DECC there has been no correspondence between representatives of my Department and Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd, Eastern Petroleum Corporation Ltd; African Minerals Ltd or Energy Enterprises Ltd.
Landis and Gyr have submitted written material on smart metering to the Department.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289742]
Joan Ruddock: My noble Friend the Minister of State is the Department's Value for Money Minister. The Department is committed to reforming public services to improve services for the citizen and we work closely with colleagues in the centre of Government on this important agenda. We do not have a public sector reform team but our Board support team reports on value for money as part of their responsibility.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps are being taken to promote energy efficiency in his Department. [289523]
Joan Ruddock: The Department of Energy and Climate Change has been working with Carbon Trust to develop and deliver a wide-reaching energy reduction and carbon management programme focusing on our London HQ. A number of significant changes have already been made, with visible reductions in energy consumption. Many of the changes relate to the Building Management System, to optimise the operation of the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) plant, by adjusting time schedules and rationalising temperature set points. We are also upgrading lighting to energy efficient systems, replacing tungsten halogen bulbs with LEDs, and installing and enabling daylight and occupancy sensing. We have installed eCubes to fridges, with potential for 15-20 per cent. energy savings.
In its Low Carbon Transition Plan, published on 15 July, DECC committed to a 10 per cent. reduction in its carbon emissions in this financial year, with more to come in 2010 and beyond.
In 2008, DEFRA installed a powerPerfector in 3 Whitehall Place, reducing energy consumption by 8.66 per cent. from the installation date to May 2009.
DECC is also promoting energy efficiency amongst its staff, senior managers and Ministers through a number of behaviour change activities, including encouraging use of the stairs, turning off electrical equipment when not in use, and reducing use of printers and photocopiers.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the level of underspend in his Department for each of its budget headings is in 2009-10. [289753]
Joan Ruddock: At this early stage in the financial year expenditure has been broadly in line with budgets for the first three months. We are keeping expenditure closely under review and are concerned to avoid both underspends and overspends as far as is possible. We will continue to monitor closely and are currently forecasting to remain within budget for the year 2009-10.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he expects the budget for (a) the Carbon Trust and (b) the Energy Saving Trust for 2009-10 to be finalised. [289891]
Joan Ruddock: The Carbon Trust’s and Energy Saving Trust’s budgets for 2009-10 have been finalised and agreed.
The Energy Saving Trust will receive £38.5 million in grant funding from DECC to deliver its objective to encourage and promote the sustainable and efficient use of energy in households and £1 million capital funding for technological field trials.
In 2009-10, the Carbon Trust's funding from DECC will be up to £84.53 million. In addition, the Carbon Trust will receive funding in 2009-10 specifically to deliver low interest loans to SMEs, and to public sector bodies through Salix Finance, as announced in Budget 2009. Total funding for these schemes in 2009-10 is up to £121.6 million. The Carbon Trust may also receive further funding for specific activities from the low carbon investment funding announced in Budget 2009.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what IT projects are being undertaken by (a) the Coal Authority, (b) the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, (c) the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, (d) the Advisory Committee on Carbon Abatement Technologies, (e) the Fuel Poverty Advisory Group, (f) the Renewables Advisory Board, (g) the UK Chemical Weapons Convention National Authority Advisory Committee, (h) the Committee on Climate Change, (i) the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management and (j) the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets; what the most recent estimate of the cost of each project is; and what the projected completion date of each is. [289872]
Mr. Kidney: No IT projects are currently being undertaken by the Advisory Committee on Carbon Abatement Technologies, the Fuel Poverty Advisory Group, the Renewables Advisory Board, the UK Chemical Weapons Convention National Authority Advisory Committee and the Committee on Climate Change.
The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) is responsible for 19 sites formally owned by the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority and British Nuclear Fuels Ltd. The NDA currently spends approximately £58 million a year on IT across its estate, through a mixture of in house and contracted services. The NDA has recently initiated a collaborative project across its estate to tender the provision of IT services across the NDA estate. New contractual arrangements are expected to be in place by 31 March 2011.
The Committee on Radioactive Waste Management is currently developing and maintaining a website. Development should be completed by January 2010. Its budget can be viewed at:
http://www.corwm.org.uk/PagesPlenary%20Meetings/2589%20%20April%20Budget%20Report%20Final.pdf
The Coal Authority has commenced work on one major IT project named "Inferis" with a value of £6.5 million. The project is due to be completed by May 2011.
| Project title | Completion date | Estimated cost (£) |
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has lead responsibility for the UK Atomic Energy Authority. UKAEA currently has no major IT projects under way.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much his Department and its predecessors spent on the Act on CO2 campaign in each year since the campaign was initiated; and what the budget for the campaign is in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10. [290163]
Joan Ruddock: The costs for the ACT ON CO2 campaign since 2007 are as follows.
2007-08: £5.5 million.
2008-09: £13 million (budgeted).
2009-10: £370,000 (committed between April and July 2009). We are considering our campaign plans for the rest of 2009-10.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what advertising campaigns his Department is running; and what the estimated total cost is of each. [289786]
Joan Ruddock: ACT ON CO2 is the Department's key public campaign to raise awareness of climate change issues and to encourage sustained behaviour change. Between April 2009 and July 2009, DECC is expected to spend approximately £370,000 on ACT ON CO2 campaign advertising media and production. We are considering our advertising plans for the rest of 2009-10.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what advertising campaigns (a) the Coal Authority, (b) the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, (c) the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, (d) the Advisory Committee on Carbon Abatement Technologies, (e) the Fuel Poverty Advisory Group, (f) the Renewables Advisory Board, (g) the UK Chemical Weapons Convention National Authority Advisory Committee, (h) the Committee on Climate Change, (i) the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management and (j) the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets is running; and what the estimated cost is of each. [289788]
12 Oct 2009 : Column 460W—continued
Mr. Kidney: The Coal Authority, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, the Advisory Committee on Carbon Abatement Technologies, the Fuel Poverty Advisory Group, the Renewables Advisory Board, the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management and the UK Chemical Weapons Convention National Authority Advisory Committee are not currently running any advertising campaigns.
The Committee on Climate Change spent £500 in the months of May and June 2009 on directing increased traffic to its website via a pay per click Google Adwords campaign. The Committee on Climate Change does not allocate any major part of its budget to be spent on promoting the organisation through advertising.
Ofgem are currently running the following advertising campaigns:
| Advertising campaign | Cost of advertising (£) |
|
Recruitment: Senior Manager, Commercial Regulation and Policy | |
The Department for Business Innovation and Skills has lead responsibility for the UK Atomic Energy Authority. UKAEA is running no advertising campaigns apart from recruitment advertising. The one minor exception is that UKAEA Limited have just agreed to pay for a hoarding at Whitehaven Rugby Club.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what advertising campaigns (a) the Energy Saving Trust and (b) the Carbon Trust are running; and what the estimated cost is of each. [289787]
Joan Ruddock: The Energy Saving Trust's key consumer campaign in 2009-10 will continue to position the Trust as the place to go for energy saving advice. The Energy Saving Trust are targeting themselves to get 1.7million customer contacts to view their website and 1.5million customers to contact advice centres.
This campaign was launched on 12 September with TV being the lead medium, supported by radio and online advertising and PR. The first part of the campaign is planned to run for four weeks until 19 October, which is the start of Energy Saving Week. The second part is planned to run from 4 to 31 January.
The estimated total cost of these for the whole of this financial year is less than £2.5 million.
The Carbon Trust's main advertising campaigns this financial year up to March 2010 are:
(1) Promotion of the interest-free loan fund for small business
(2) Promotion of support and help to business and the public sector on carbon emission reduction and energy efficiency
(3) Promotion of support and help to businesses on low carbon innovation
The estimated total cost of these for the whole of this financial year is £4 million.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether (a) he, (b) Ministers in his Department and (c) officials have met representatives of (i) Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd, (ii) Eastern Petroleum Corporation Ltd, (iii) African Minerals Ltd, (iv) Landis+Gyr and (v) Energy Enterprises Ltd in the last three years. [289935]
Mr. Kidney: Since the creation of DECC officials in the Department have met representatives from Landis and Gyr to discuss smart metering and demand side response. There have been bilateral meetings and the company has been represented, with other stakeholders, at presentations and workshops supporting smart meter policy and demand side response development.
There have been no formal meetings with representatives of Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd, Eastern Petroleum Corporation Ltd, African Minerals Ltd or Energy Enterprises Ltd.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many of his Department's staff were based in (a) his Department's London offices, (b) the London offices of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and (c) the London offices of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 3 July 2009. [289654]
Joan Ruddock: The Department had 25 staff working in the London offices of the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform on 3 July 2009. The remaining staff were working in DECC offices.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many staff are employed by his Department at offices outside London. [289782]
Joan Ruddock: The Department has an office in Aberdeen which employs 77 staff. This is the only office DECC has outside of London
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many economists from the Government Economic Service are employed by (a) his Department, (b) the Committee on Climate Change and (c) the Office of Climate Change. [289856]
Joan Ruddock: As of 1 August 2009 there were 70 economists from the Government Economic Service employed in DECC. This total includes GES economists in the Office of Climate Change, which is part of DECC. Some of these economists were on part time contracts.
As of 1 August 2009 there were 10 economists from the Government Economic Service employed in the Committee on Climate Change.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many members of staff in (a) the Coal Authority, (b) the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, (c) the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, (d) the Advisory Committee on Carbon Abatement Technologies, (e) the Fuel Poverty Advisory Group, (f) the Renewables Advisory Board, (g) the UK Chemical Weapons Convention National Authority Advisory Committee, (h) the Committee on Climate Change, (i) the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management and (j) the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (i) are classified as Government communicators and (ii) have access to the Government Communication Network. [289871]
Mr. Kidney: No staff in the Coal Authority, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority nor members of the Advisory Committee on Carbon Abatement Technologies, the Fuel Poverty Advisory Group, the Renewables Advisory Board, the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management and the UK Chemical Weapons Convention National Authority Advisory Committee are classed as Government communicators, or have access to the Government Communications Network.
The Committee on Climate Change's Communications Manager, is both a Government communicator and a member of the Government Communications Network.
OFGEM has 12 staff classified as Government communicators. All have access to the Government Communication Network.
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has lead responsibility for the UK Atomic Energy Authority. No UKAEA staff are classed as Government communicators or have access to the Government Communications Network.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 10 March 2009, Official Report, column 402W, on departmental postal services, whether his Department has established a correspondence unit. [290275]
Mr. Kidney: Casework on the Warm Front Scheme is dealt with in-house. Other cases from the public are handled through a shared service approach by the customer contact units of DEFRA and BIS. The Department is considering a range of options for handling correspondence in the long-term.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 23 March 2009, Official Report, columns 172-73W, on Government communications, what the pay band is of each of the 13 members of staff in his Department who are classified as Government communicators. [290026]
Joan Ruddock: DECC now have 15 members of staff who are classified as Government communicators. These include:
2 x Senior Civil Servants
2 x Grade 6s
2 x Grade 7s
2 x Senior Information Officers
7 x Information Officers.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 23 March 2009, Official Report, columns 172-73W, on Government communications, what the job description is of his Department’s marketing officers. [290027]
Joan Ruddock: The role of the marketing and campaigns team in DECC is to:
ensure all marketing and campaigns output is clearly aligned to departmental policy priorities and informed by audience insight/research;
plan, deliver, co-ordinate all marketing activity, including as appropriate advertising, direct marketing, digital activity, public relations, partnerships and publications;
ensure all marketing services are procured in accordance with EU procurement policy, demonstrate value for money and that outputs are effectively evaluated; and
liaise as appropriate with other Government Departments, delivery bodies and other stakeholders to ensure communications are joined up, transparent and effective.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what proportion of his Department's waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289659]
Joan Ruddock: The Department was formed in October 2008 and our waste recycling services are provided by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The proportion of waste recycled by the Department is not calculated separately.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 2 April 2009, Official Report, column 1357W, on departmental responsibilities, what level of gateway review was conducted for each of the projects referred to; on what date the gateway review was concluded in each case; and what the outcome was. [289713]
Joan Ruddock: Details of the level of gateway review of the projects—2 April 2009, Official Report, column 1357W—are listed as follows. The outcome of the review is not disclosed on the grounds that it would prejudice the exercise of audit function.
| Project | OGC Gate | Date |
|
Government carbon offsetting fund II (currently in progress) | ||
|
February 2007, November 2007, September 2008 and scheduled for September 2009 | ||
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 30 March 2009, Official Report, column 930W, on departmental responsibilities, how many staff of each grade are employed in his Department's central strategy team. [289755]
Joan Ruddock: There are 37 staff employed in the central strategy team. The breakdown is as follows;
7 x SCS
4 x Grade 6
14 x Grade 7
3 x SEO
4 x HEO
5 x EO.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 30 March 2009, Official Report, column 930W, on departmental responsibilities, what projects are being undertaken by his Department's central strategy team. [289756]
Joan Ruddock: Since the previous answer referred to, the main focus of the department's central strategy team has been to co-ordinate the production of the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan, as published on 15 July. The team also supported the Prime Minister's Special Representative on Carbon Markets, Mark Lazarowicz MP, in the production of his report Global Carbon Trading: a framework for reducing emissions, and led the production of the cross-government publication Investing in a Low-Carbon Britain.
Following the publication of the Transition Plan, the team will be focusing on work to ensure its implementation, both within my department and working with others across Government and outside.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what transposition date his Department has set for each EU directive on matters for which his Department is responsible which has been brought into force since the establishment of his Department. [290256]
Joan Ruddock: DECC does not currently keep a central record of the information requested. However, the following have been identified. DECC is responsible for the transposition of the following directives made on or after October 2008:
Directive 2008/101/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 November 2008 amending Directive 2003/87/EC so as to include aviation activities in the scheme for greenhouse
gas emission allowance trading within the community. The Directive will be transposed in two statutory instruments: the first will come into force on 17 September 2009, the second is scheduled to come into force by 2 February 2010, which is the deadline for transposition.
Directive 2009/28/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources and amending and subsequently repealing Directives 2001/77/EC and 2003/30/EC. The deadline for transposition is 5 December 2010.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 466W—continued
Directive 2009/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 amending Directive 2003/87/EC so as to improve and extend the greenhouse gas emission allowance trading scheme of the community. The deadline for transposition is 31 December 2009 (for article 1(10) and 1(13)) and 31 December 2012 (for the remainder).
Directive 2009/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the geological storage of carbon dioxide and amending Council Directive 85/337/EEC, European Parliament and Council Directives 2000/60/EC, 2001/80/EC, 2004/53/EC, 2006/12/EC, 2008/1/EC and Regulation EC No 1013/2006. The deadline for transposition is 25 June 2011.
Council Directive 2009/71/Euratom of 25 June 2009 establishing a Community framework for the nuclear safety of nuclear installations. The deadline for transposition is 22 July 2011.
Directive 2009/72/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 concerning common rules for the internal market in electricity and repealing Directive 2003/54/EC. The deadline for transposition is 3 March 2011.
Directive 2009/73/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 concerning common rules for the internal market in natural gas and repealing Directive 2003/55/EC. The deadline for transposition is 3 March 2011.
A Directive imposing an obligation on member states to maintain minimum stocks of crude oil and/or petroleum products was agreed at the Energy Council of 12 June 2009 with a transposition date of 31 December 2012.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what projects in his Department have been subject to gateway review since his Department was created. [289789]
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what stocktake meetings his Department has had with the Prime Minister’s Delivery Unit since his Department was established. [289936]
Joan Ruddock: The PMDU is in constant contact with Departments as part of its process of taking stock of delivery. It reports regularly to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, the Treasury and the Departments concerned.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many external training courses were attended by staff of his Department since its inception in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of each course. [289678]
Joan Ruddock: DECC external training budgets are delegated to line managers, and the information requested is not held centrally. As a consequence the information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department is taking to promote the uptake of smart grid technologies to generate electricity. [289366]
Mr. Kidney: The Department of Energy and Climate Change is already working on key areas of smart networks to ensure it understand the benefits of smart grid technologies for meeting our goals and to encourage deployment in the coming years. Its programme currently consists of:
A programme to roll out smart meters to every home by end 2020—an £8 billion private sector investment. This is one of the building blocks for creating a smart grid.
Encouraging Distribution Network Operators through regulatory incentives to trial new ‘smarter’ technologies on their networks. The Office of the Gas and Electricity Markets are proposing to significantly increase the amount of funding available for this.
Providing direct funding for innovation through the Energy Technologies Institute which aims to invest up to £l billion over the next 10 years in low carbon energy technologies, including networks. The Government are engaging with the recently established Energy Technologies Institute networks panel that is scoping the objectives they set for a call for projects.
Providing direct funding, through the Research Councils, of over £30 million for collaborative research in networks involving academia and industry. Providing complementary funding of £6 million to supplement other funding for network innovation such as Ofgem’s Innovation Funding Incentive among other sources. Government funding for smart grids will be used to support early stage development of trials of key technologies consistent with a vision for a smart grid in the UK to be published later this year.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 30 March 2009, Official Report, columns 931-2W, on electricity generation, what the electricity supply capacity margin was in each year from 1990 to 2006. [289758]
Mr. Kidney: The following table shows the UK electricity supply capacity margin, for financial years 1993-04 to 2006-07.
| Total electricity declared net capacity (MW) | Simultaneous UK maximum electricity load met (MW) | Implied percentage margin | |
| Source: Energy Sector Indicators, 2009, available at: http://decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/publications/indicators/indicators.aspx | |||
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what information his Department holds for benchmarking purposes on the percentage of electricity generated lost in (a) transmission and (b) distribution in other EU member states. [290261]
Mr. Kidney: The Department does not hold such information. However, Eurostat does publish data on total network losses, transmission and distribution combined, for each member state.
Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many people have received compensation payments under the Guaranteed Standards Scheme from electricity companies in the last 12 months. [290929]
Joan Ruddock [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The number of people receiving compensation payments under the Guaranteed Standards Scheme for 2007-08 is:
| Electricity Guaranteed Standard of Performance (EGS) | Number of payments made | Value of payments |
| (1) Figures that Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) reported in their annual revenue returns as “normal compensation payments due” across the 14 DNOs. This includes ex-gratia payments from the 14 DNOs to consumers who failed to claim under the EGS. | ||
Page 37 of the following link details what each EGS covers:
http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Networks/ElecDist/QualofServ/QoSIncent/Documents1/12180-258_05.pdf
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department is taking to support the (a) development and (b) uptake of dynamic demand technology in the UK; and if he will make a statement. [289365]
Mr. Kidney:
The Department is assessing the potential for such technology to help us achieve our energy policy goals. We recently published a call for evidence on
“Delivering Secure Low Carbon Electricity” which focused in part on how to make electricity demand smarter, including through the use of dynamic demand devices. The call for evidence closes at the end of October.
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions he has had with (a) utility companies and (b) domestic appliance manufacturers on dynamic demand technology; and if he will make a statement. [289367]
Mr. Kidney: I have invited stakeholders to submit analysis about the potential for dynamic demand through DECC's recent call for evidence “Delivering Secure Low Carbon Electricity” and hope that the utility companies and domestic appliance manufacturers will use this opportunity to represent their views. The call for evidence closes at the end of October.
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of smart metering in (a) reducing carbon dioxide emissions and (b) improving efficiency in the UK electricity supply industry. [289364]
Mr. Kidney: In May 2009 the Government published an Impact Assessment of the roll-out of smart metering alongside its consultation on smart metering. Both documents are available from the consultations section of the DECC website at:
www.decc.gov.uk
The impact assessment includes an assessment of the benefits of smart metering. The consultation closed in August and the Government are now considering the responses.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether his Department plans to hold a consultation during 2009 on its plans to roll-out smart meters to all domestic customers. [289890]
Mr. Kidney: The Government published a consultation on smart metering on 11 May 2009. It is available at the consultation section of the DECC website at:
www.decc.gov.uk
The consultation closed on 3 August. The Government are now considering responses and will respond to the consultation in due course.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the average price of (a) a unit of gas and (b) a kWh of electricity supplied to households in the UK was in (i) 2006, (ii) 2007 and (iii) each month of 2008; and what information his Department holds for benchmarking purposes on equivalent figures for each other EU member state. [289944]
Mr. Kidney: The Department's latest estimates for the average annual domestic energy bills and provisional estimates for the year to 2009 and are published in Quarterly Energy Prices, published in September 2009.
For an average consumer using 18,000 kWh of gas per year and paying their bills on receipt (standard credit), the average unit price for gas was £2.63 in 2006, £3.07 in 2007, £3.17 in 2008 and £3.99 in 2009.
For an average consumer using 3,300 kWh of electricity per year and paying their bills on receipt (standard credit), the average unit price for electricity was £10.24 in 2006, £11.61 in 2007, £12.26 in 2008 and £13.94 in 2009. Average unit prices per month are not available.
Regarding unit prices of gas and electricity in other EU member states, DECC republishes bi-annual data collected by Eurostat, the European statistical agency. The data are in Table 5.6.2 and 5.10.2 of Quarterly Energy Prices, published in September 2009 and available online at:
12 Oct 2009 : Column 470W—continued
http://decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/publications/prices/prices.aspx
Latest data, for July to December 2008, show that UK domestic gas and electricity prices were the lowest and seventh lowest in the EU 15 (the original 15 EU member states) respectively.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the average expenditure on (a) gas and (b) electricity of a household in the UK was in (i) 2006, (ii) 2007 and (iii) each month of 2008; and what information his Department holds for benchmarking purposes on equivalent figures for each other EU member state. [289945]
Mr. Kidney: The Department's latest estimates for the average annual domestic energy bills and provisional estimates for the year to 2009 and are published in Quarterly Energy Prices, published in September 2009.
For an average consumer using 18,000 kWh of gas per year and paying their bills on receipt (standard credit), the average annual bill for gas was £474 in 2006, £552 in 2007, £570 in 2008 and £719 in 2009.
For an average consumer using 3,300 kWh of electricity per year and paying their bills on receipt (standard credit), the average annual bill for electricity was £338 in 2006, £383 in 2007, £405 in 2008 and £460 in 2009. Average bills per month are not available.
DECC does not hold any information on average expenditure on gas and electricity by other EU member states. However regarding unit prices of gas and electricity in other EU member states, DECC republishes bi-annual data collected by Eurostat, the European statistical agency. The data are in Table 5.6.2 and 5.10.2 of Quarterly Energy Prices, published in September 2009 and available online at:
http://decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/publications/prices/prices.aspx
Latest data, for July to December 2008, show that UK domestic gas and electricity prices were the lowest and seventh lowest in the EU 15 (the original 15 EU member states) respectively.
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his Department's policy is on the development of (a) grid scale energy storage and (b) energy balancing technologies; and if he will make a statement. [289368]
Mr. Kidney: DECC's recently published “Delivering Secure Low Carbon Electricity: A Call for Evidence” asks for evidence from stakeholders on the potential of electrical energy storage to manage the balance between electricity supply and demand in the long-term.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 23 March 2009, Official Report, column 171W, on energy: consumers, how much funding (a) his Department and (b) Ofgem allocated to the Energy Best Deal pilot. [290029]
Mr. Kidney: The Department provided funding of £150,000 for the national roll-out of the Energy Best Deal in England and Wales during the winter of 2008-09. Ofgem funded the pilot phase in 2007-08, which cost £27,000.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will place in the Library a copy of the (a) display energy certificate and (b) advisory report for each of the buildings occupied by the Energy Saving Trust's regional advice centres. [289647]
Joan Ruddock: The Energy Savings Trust's (EST) regional advice centres are not required to have display energy certificates or associated advisory reports for public buildings. However, as would be expected, EST has taken steps to identify the energy performance of its buildings.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the budget of the Energy Saving Trust was in (a) 2007-08, (b) 2008-09 and (c) 2009-10; what it is planned to be in 2010-11; and how much of that funding was from his Department in each year. [289721]
Joan Ruddock: The Energy Saving Trust (EST) is a not-for-profit private company limited by guarantee, and so their accounts are a matter of public record and are accessible at Companies House.
The following table highlights what DECC, and previously DEFRA, has given in funding to the EST for the valuable work it undertakes to encourage and promote the sustainable and efficient use of energy.
| £ million | ||
| Resource funding | Capital funding | |
The funding allocation for future years has not yet been confirmed.
Chris McCafferty: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what plans he has for the future regulation of the industrial energy supply sector. [290752]
Joan Ruddock [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The Government continues to believe in the importance of well-regulated, competitive energy markets in the UK and internationally to ensure secure, affordable and low carbon energy supplies, whether for industrial, commercial or residential customers. Market conditions develop over time, and the Government will amend the UK regulatory framework as required to deliver these objectives while maintaining the stability necessary to support investment.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his most recent estimate is of the proportion of customers using a pre-payment meter who have a household income below 60 per cent. of median income. [289645]
Mr. Kidney: In England in 2006, around 30 per cent. of households using a pre-payment meter for either their gas, electricity or both utilities had an income below 60 per cent. of the median.
The income measures used to derive the estimates employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication ‘Households Below Average Income’ series, which uses net disposable household income, adjusted (or “equivalised”) for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. Small differences in the definition of income will exist because of the use of a different survey source.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change against what numerical measures of security of supply of (a) gas and (b) electricity his Department collects information. [289874]
Mr. Kidney: The Department of Energy and Climate Change collects numerical information relating to gas and electricity security of supply. The data are available on an annual basis in DUKES (Digest of UK energy statistics). Quarterly and monthly data are also available at the following websites (where the corresponding tables in DUKES can also be found).
http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/source/electricity/electricity.aspx
http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/source/gas/gas.aspx
UK gas production and imports: Table 4.3
Origin of imports: Table 4.5
Capacity of gas storage sites: Table 4.4
Gas consumption in the UK: Table 4.2
Fuel mix used in electricity generation: Table 5.6
Plant capacity: Table 5.7
Plant load factors and maximum demand: Table 5.10
Electricity consumption in the UK: Table 5.2
The Department also releases information relating to energy consumption by sector and end use; these data are available from the Energy Consumption in the UK section of the Departments website at:
http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/publications/ecuk/ecuk.aspx
In addition, the Department receives information from National Grid on electricity generation and network capacity and on gas flows and capacities which are referred to in Energy Markets Outlook.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 30 March 2009, Official Report, column 932W, on energy: advisory services, how many members of the public have visited each of the regional advice centres in each of the last five years. [289759]
Joan Ruddock: The roll out of the network of the Energy Saving Trust (EST) regional advice centres began in March 2008 and was completed in December 2008. The advice centres are not open to the public to visit, but provide the consumer with comprehensive and tailored advice on how to reduce their carbon footprint, through the Government-funded Act on C02 advice line and through outreach events. In 2008-09 the EST advised over 1.3 million consumers through their advice centres.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 30 March 2009, Official Report, column 932W, on energy: advisory services, what the cost of running each regional advice centre was in each of the last five years. [289760]
Joan Ruddock: The roll-out of the network of the EST regional advice centres began in March 2008 and was completed in December 2008. We are not able to provide details on the cost of running each regional advice centre as this information is commercially sensitive as the contracts were let by EST by competitive tender.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress has been made towards establishing a one-stop green homes service since the Prime Minister’s announcement of the initiative in November 2007. [289447]
Joan Ruddock: Following my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister’s announcement in November 2007, the Energy Saving Trust (EST) has established the Government funded Act on CO2 advice line and nationwide network of regional advice centres. The ‘one-stop-shop’ offers consumers a range of free and impartial advice on energy efficiency, microgeneration and renewable energy, low carbon transport, water efficiency and waste reduction and a range of independent services and sources of funding that will help them action that advice.
The EST will also be contacting all households with properties that have received the lowest home energy ratings (F and G ratings) in their Energy Performance Certificates, to offer tailored advice on energy savings measures that could be taken.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Chorley of 23 April 2009, Official Report, columns 863-64W, on household energy efficiency, whether the seven million homes to be provided with whole house energy refurbishment by 2020 are in addition to the over five million homes insulated since 2002. [289534]
Joan Ruddock: Our goal is to have made whole-house packages of measures available to all homes by 2030. These packages would include all cost-effective energy saving measures and renewable heat and electricity measures as appropriate and we project that around seven million homes will have received them by 2020. This may include homes that have already been insulated since 2002, where scope exists for additional measures through the whole-house approach.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what expenditure the Energy Saving Trust incurred on energy efficiency measures in domestic dwellings in (a) 2007-08 and (b) 2008-09; and what estimate the Trust has made of such expenditure in (i) 2009-10 and (ii) 2010-11. [289651]
Joan Ruddock: The Trust has not directly funded any domestic energy efficiency measures in households during the periods 2007-08 and 2008-09 as it is not the Energy Saving Trust's role to directly fund such measures. The Trust does not plan to fund these measures in future years.
The Trust raises consumers' awareness of the effectiveness of energy efficiency measures and then converts that awareness into action. It does this by sign-posting and guiding consumers to appropriate grant and offer schemes for energy efficiency measures such as insulation.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether his Department holds information on (a) gas and (b) electricity tariffs charged by UK energy supply companies to customers in other countries. [289894]
Mr. Kidney: DECC does not hold information on tariffs offered by different supply companies within other countries. Eurostat collates equivalent figures on average unit prices in other EU countries, which DECC publishes.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent steps the Government has taken with international partners to achieve a low carbon global economy. [291531]
Joan Ruddock: The UK Government are committed to a low carbon global economy. Internationally, we are working through fora including the G8, G20 and Major Economies Forum, to stimulate a low carbon recovery and support a transition to a low carbon economy.
This was a key priority for the G20 London summit, chaired by the Prime Minister. The summit communiqué makes building a green and sustainable economy one of
the six core commitments of economic recovery made by the G20 countries, and ‘accelerating the transition to a green economy’ one of the goals of fiscal expansion. G20 leaders also agreed a strong commitment to achieving an international climate change agreement at Copenhagen—the first time all major countries have collectively done so. Achieving an ambitious agreement will be an important step towards creating an international framework which supports a low carbon global economy.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many hits the Offshore Energy Strategic Environmental Assessment website has received since its creation. [289648]
Mr. Kidney: The Offshore Energy SEA website received 1,397,543 successful requests for pages from 40,315 distinct hosts between 10 December 2007 (when scoping began) and 24 July 2009.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 7 July 2009, Official Report, column 681W, on energy: prices, when he expects the proposals on which Ofgem has consulted to be implemented. [289754]
Mr. Kidney: On 21 September Ofgem released a note on the implementation of these measures. This is available from Ofgem's website at this address:
http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Media/PressRel/Documents1/Remedies%20info%20note%20final.pdf
Chris McCafferty: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment he has made of the effects of increases in energy prices on small and medium-sized businesses. [290748]
Joan Ruddock [holding answer 9 September 2009]: DECC is keenly aware of the impact of past increases in energy costs on small and medium sized businesses. Wholesale energy costs have fallen in recent months, creating the potential for businesses renewing contracts or agreeing new ones to look for price reductions in comparison with earlier in the year.
DECC welcomes the measures recently announced by Ofgem to improve the operation of the SME supply market. DECC receives information and considers data and analysis on the impacts of energy prices, from a number of sources. DECC publishes data on energy prices, based on energy consumption levels.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 475W—continued
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 30 March 2009, Official Report, column 931W, on the Environmental Transformation Fund, if he will place in the Library a copy of the Contribution Arrangement. [289757]
Joan Ruddock:
This Contribution Arrangement is between the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Northern Ireland, acting jointly through my department and the Department for International Development. We have placed a copy of the Contribution Arrangement in the Library.
It should be noted that as a non-legally binding agreement it is used as a flexible tool to facilitate the UK's contribution to Climate Investment Funds, and may be subject to amendments and revisions as necessary. We have submitted a cover note to this effect.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which (a) statutory instruments and (b) other regulations relating to matters for which his Department is responsible have been brought forward as a consequence of obligations arising from EU law since the establishment of his Department. [289860]
Joan Ruddock: DECC does not keep a central record of the information requested. However, the following orders and regulations made by DECC on or after October 2008 have been identified as implementing EU obligations:
The Transfrontier Shipment of Radioactive Waste and Spent Fuel Regulations 2008 (S.I. 2008/3087).
Renewables Obligation Order 2009 (S.I. 2009/785).
The Gas and Electricity (Dispute Resolution) Regulations 2009 (S.I. 2009/1349).
Aviation Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Scheme Regulations 2009 (S.I. 2009/2301).
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much his Department plans to spend on the reductions of fuel poverty in the next three years. [289927]
Mr. Kidney: The Department's fuel poverty budget for the current spending round (2008-11) was £400 million in 2008-09, £374 million in the current year and £200 million in 2010-11. The fuel poverty budget beyond 2010-11 will be subject to the normal Government spending review process.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment he has made of the effects of winter fuel payments on levels of fuel poverty. [289931]
Mr. Kidney: Winter Fuel Payments make an important contribution to tackling fuel poverty and are responsible for taking around 100,000 households out of fuel poverty in England in 2006 (and around 200,000 in the UK as a whole).
For the purposes of the Government's fuel poverty statistics, and consistency with other statistics. Winter Fuel Payments are classified as an addition to recipients' incomes. However, while it remains appropriate to consider Winter Fuel Payments in this way for statistical purposes, it is also useful to consider what effect they would have if used to meet energy bills directly.
Taking this approach, around 600,000 fewer households in England (and around 1.1 million fewer households in
the UK as a whole) are shown to need to spend more that 10 per cent. of their income in order to meet the remaining costs of heating their home adequately.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many households in (a) rural and (b) non-rural areas have been classified as being in fuel poverty in each year since 1997. [290255]
Mr. Kidney: Figures for the number of households in fuel poverty in England are produced from analysis of the English House Condition Survey. Data at the rural/urban level are only available from 2003 onwards. The definitions of urban and rural populations were modified between 2004 and 2005 meaning there will be some discontinuity in the series shown in the following table:
| Number households in fuel poverty (000s) | ||||
| 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | |
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many homes in (a) North West Leicestershire constituency, (b) Leicestershire, (c) the East Midlands and (d) England are living in fuel poverty. [292385]
Mr. Kidney: The most recently available sub-regional split of fuel poverty relates to 2003 and shows that in North West Leicestershire, there were around 2,300 fuel poor households. In the county of Leicestershire in the same period, there were around 15,100 fuel poor households.
More recent figures for the East Midlands and England are available. These show that in 2006, there were around 236,000 fuel poor households in the East Midlands and around 2.4 million fuel poor households living in England.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what definition of the term green jobs his Department uses; and what his most recent estimate is of the number of people employed in jobs which meet his Department's definition of green jobs. [289652]
Joan Ruddock: There is currently no single definition of what constitutes a green job.
The definition of green jobs used in the Government's UK Low Carbon Industrial Strategy is based on an analysis of the Low Carbon and Environmental Goods and Services (LCEGS) sector (Innovas, March 2009, Low Carbon and Environmental Goods and Services: an industry analysis).
The definition includes jobs in the following industrial sectors and their supply chains: air, noise and marine pollution; renewable energy; and emerging low-carbon technologies.
Innovas estimated that in 2007-08 there were around 880,000 workers employed in the LCEGS sector in the UK.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what incentives the Government has provided for businesses to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. [291533]
Joan Ruddock: Government have a range of measures in place to incentivise and assist businesses to reduce their emissions. These include:
Incentivising businesses to save energy through measures such as the Climate Change Levy, Climate Change Agreements and the forthcoming Carbon Reduction Commitment;
Including high-carbon industries in the EU Emissions Trading System; and
Advice and support, in particular through the Government funded Carbon Trust, which provides a range of services to help businesses reduce their emissions. These include carbon surveys, interest free loans for small and medium enterprises, and a dedicated website and advice line.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent steps the Government has taken to assist businesses in Coventry to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. [291532]
Joan Ruddock: Government have a range of measures in place to incentivise and assist businesses to reduce their emissions. These include:
Incentivising businesses to save energy through measures such as the Climate Change Levy, Climate Change Agreements and the forthcoming Carbon Reduction Commitment;
Including high-carbon industries in the EU Emissions Trading System; and
Providing advice and other support, including interest free loans, to help businesses cut their carbon emissions and reduce their resource use.
While there are no specific measures for businesses in Coventry, all these measures will incentivise businesses in Coventry as they will businesses across the country.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress has been made on the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate's investigation into the high-pressure backup cooling water pump event of 20 June 2008 at Hartlepool nuclear power station; and if he will make a statement. [289718]
Mr. Kidney:
The investigation by the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate into this incident is complete. The incident is classified as level 1 under the International Atomic Energy Agency's International Nuclear Events Scale. This level is defined as “an anomaly beyond the authorised operating regime” and is one class above the lowest category of 0. The facility operator, British Energy, is legally obliged by its nuclear site licence to provide adequate arrangements for investigating incidents on the site and conducted an investigation into the June 2008 incident. In line with its established policy for such incidents, the Nuclear Directorate's investigation consisted of a review of British Energy's own investigation and concluded that this was satisfactory.
The key change made as a result of the investigation was that British Energy put in place improvements to its maintenance arrangements at Hartlepool nuclear power station.
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (1) if he will meet representatives of the heating controls industry to discuss the merits of establishing a joint Government-industry campaign to promote the energy efficiency benefits of heating controls; and if he will make a statement; [289899]
(2) what steps his Department (a) has taken and (b) plans to take to increase consumer awareness of the potential reduction in energy consumption of using domestic heating controls; and if he will make a statement. [289902]
Joan Ruddock: The Department has taken a number of actions to increase consumer awareness of the benefits of using domestic heating controls. Our Building Regulations require a minimum set of controls to be installed when a boiler is replaced. In addition, we have ensured heating controls are an eligible measure under the obligation on energy suppliers to help households save carbon and energy and over 2 million heating controls have been distributed since 2005 through this scheme. The Energy Saving Trust (EST) includes the proper installation and use of heating controls as part of its core package of free energy efficiency advice to consumers, which DECC grant funds. The EST is also monitoring some advanced controls, as part of an extension to an on-going boiler performance project. More recently, the Government have acted to include Home Energy Advice as a qualifying measure under the existing supplier obligation. The Home Energy Advice package will be delivered to householders face to face in their home and encompasses a specific set of energy using behaviours, including how heating controls can be used more effectively to achieve energy savings.
Given this significant level of activity we would question the need for a joint Government-industry campaign to promote the benefits of heating controls further.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress has been made on the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate's investigation into the interlock event at Heysham 1 nuclear power station on 25 June 2008; and if he will make a statement. [289719]
Mr. Kidney:
The investigation by the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate into this incident is complete. The incident is classified as level 1 under the International Atomic Energy Agency's International Nuclear Events Scale. This level is defined as “an anomaly beyond the authorised operating regime” and is one class above the lowest category of 0. The facility operator, British Energy, is legally obliged by its nuclear site licence to provide adequate arrangements for investigating incidents on the site and conducted an investigation into the June 2008 incident. In line with its established policy for such incidents, the Nuclear Directorate's
investigation consisted of a review of British Energy's own investigation and concluded that this was satisfactory. The key change made as a result of the investigation was that British Energy put in place improvements to its control of maintenance activities at Heysham 1 nuclear power station.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the number of jobs in the low carbon and environmental goods and services industries to be created as a consequence of the fiscal stimulus announced in the 2008 Pre-Budget Report. [290274]
Joan Ruddock: The Government have not made a formal assessment of the number of new jobs created by specific measures announced in the pre-Budget report. However, independent research (Innovas, March 2009, “Low Carbon and Environmental Goods and Services: an industry analysis”) estimated that the low carbon and environmental goods and services sector employs 880,000 people in the UK and is expected to grow to over one million by the middle of the next decade. The accelerated capital spending and additional resources announced in the pre-Budget report to support low carbon growth, and the £1.4 billion of additional targeted support for the low carbon sector announced in Budget 2009, will be key to driving investment and employment in these sectors.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (1) how many compact fluorescent light bulbs have been provided under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target scheme in each of the last five years; [289600]
(2) how many compact fluorescent light bulbs have been issued without charge under (a) the Warm Front Scheme and (b) the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target scheme in each of the last five years. [289636]
Joan Ruddock: The information is as follows:
(a) The number of compact fluorescent light bulbs issued under the Warm Front Scheme in each of the last five years is provided in the following table.
| Scheme year | Number of compact fluorescent light bulbs issued under the Warm Front Scheme |
The cost of providing two compact fluorescent light bulbs is currently £8.09, which is deducted from the available household grant.
(b) The Carbon Emissions Reduction Target scheme commenced in April 2008. 152.6 million compact fluorescent light bulbs were issued in the period April 2008 to March 2009.
101.8 million compact fluorescent light bulbs were issued under the previous three-year scheme (April 2005 to March 2008).
39.7 million compact fluorescent light bulbs were issued under the first supplier obligation scheme (April 2002 to March 2005).
Under the three schemes a significant percentage of compact fluorescent light bulbs (approximately 75 per cent.) are understood to have been distributed by energy suppliers without charge.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions his Department estimates have been avoided as a result of the provision of compact fluorescent light bulbs under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target scheme in each of the last five years. [289601]
Joan Ruddock: The estimated annual savings from the compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs) installed and used since April 2005 and up to March 2009 are estimated as 5.9 TWh of electricity and annual savings of 1.95MtCO2. This is based on 254 million CFLs distributed and builds in the following assumptions:
12 Oct 2009 : Column 481W—continued
An average use of light bulbs of 460 hours a year.
The heat replacement effect.
Around 5 per cent. of the CFLs are not installed.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what process is used to determine the type of compact fluorescent light bulbs that are sent to energy customers under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target scheme. [289602]
Joan Ruddock: Energy suppliers are free to promote to consumers any compact fluorescent light bulb (CFL) that has been proven to save energy and carbon. Up to 1 January 2010, at which point direct mail CFLs are to be withdrawn from CERT, it is at suppliers' discretion which CFL type they promote, within Ofgem's guidance. The guidance states that only four CFLs per customer are eligible to be sent directly and that any pack of four bulbs has to include at least two types.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 2 April 2009, Official Report, column 1369W, on the Warm Front Scheme, what steps his Department takes to ensure that compact fluorescent light bulbs sent to Warm Front customers are suitable for the light fittings at their property. [289770]
Mr. Kidney: All compact fluorescent light bulbs issued to Warm Front customers are supplied with standard British bayonet cap fittings. Bayonet cap fittings are suitable for use in more than 95 per cent. of the light fittings in England.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 2 April 2009, Official Report, column 1369W, on the Warm Front scheme, what process is used to determine the type of compact fluorescent light bulbs sent to Warm Front customers. [289771]
Mr. Kidney: The type of compact fluorescent light bulb issued to Warm Front customers is a 11 Watt replacement for a 40Watt incandescent light bulb, one of the most common light bulbs used in England.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 2 April 2009, Official Report, column 1369W, on the Warm Front scheme, how many compact fluorescent light bulbs were sent on to each Warm Front customer in the latest period for which figures are available. [289772]
Mr. Kidney: Households eligible for assistance under the Warm Front scheme each receive two compact fluorescent light bulbs.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what support his Department is providing to companies developing low-carbon goods and services. [289849]
Joan Ruddock: DECC provides a range of support to UK companies developing low carbon goods and services. This is part of wider government support offered through Solutions for Business and includes:
£405 million of additional funding for low carbon industries and green manufacturing in the UK as announced in Budget 2009; advice and support through the DECC-funded Carbon Trust for companies developing low carbon goods and services; venture capital for low carbon companies, including through the UK Innovation Investment Fund and the Carbon Trust’s investment activities.
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he plans to reply to the letter of 15 January 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on Mr and Mrs R. Allan. [290240]
Joan Ruddock: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State replied to my right hon. Friend on 17 March 2009.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what funding his Department has provided to the National Skills Academy for Nuclear since 3 October 2008; and what funding his Department plans to provide for the Academy in (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2010-11. [289791]
Mr. Kidney: It is not within the remit of the Department of Energy and Climate Change to provide funding to the National Skills Academy for Nuclear (NSAN). For the first three years of its operation from 2008, the learning and Skills Council will provide funding to match the amount invested in the Skills Academy by Associate Members. NSAN, like all other National Skills Academies, is expected to become self-sufficient after three years of operation.
The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) is a non-departmental public body which is sponsored by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). The LSC is due to be replaced by the Skills Funding Agency from April 2010.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what requirements the Government places on gas supply companies to hold stocks of gas in storage. [289417]
Mr. Kidney: The level of gas held in storage is primarily a commercial decision made by companies. It is influenced by the commercial judgments of shippers and suppliers on how best to meet their supply requirements; and by the ‘cash-out’ regime under our gas market governance arrangements, which exposes gas shippers/suppliers to potentially very high cash-out charges for any daily imbalance between the quantities of gas they convey into, and remove from, the gas network.
However, there are safety monitors in place to ensure there is a minimum amount of gas in storage available over the winter, across all storage sites in GB, for the System Operator to operate the system safely at times of emergency.
Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent estimate he has made of the average annual level of carbon dioxide emissions produced by a nuclear power plant in the UK. [291347]
Mr. Kidney [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The Nuclear White Paper 2008 set out that the lifecycle emissions of nuclear power, including CO2 emitted during construction, operation and decommissioning of the power station, mining, and transport of fuel, and disposal of waste are in the range of 7-22 g/kWh of electricity generated.
In common with other low-carbon fuel technologies such as wind or hydro, a significant proportion of these lifecycle emissions are derived from the construction and decommissioning phases of the power station's life. There are some CO2 emissions associated with uranium mining, which are small, and which are incorporated in the overall lifecycle emissions.
The World Nuclear Associated has published analyses of lifecycle CO2 emissions from nuclear power generation which reported at:
http://www.world-nuclear.org/education/comparativeco2.html
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate has made a decision on the periodic safety review for the Chapelcross nuclear site; and if he will make a statement. [289649]
Mr. Kidney: I understand a decision is expected to be made on 30 October 2009.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (1) when he expects the budget for 2009-10 of the Office for Renewable Energy Development to be finalised; [289895]
(2) when he expects the Office for Renewable Energy Development to become operational. [289896]
Mr. Kidney: The Office for Renewable Energy Deployment (ORED) was launched on 15 July 2009. ORED's mission is to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy in order to reduce carbon emissions, increase security of supply and create business opportunities in the UK.
As of August 2009 the budgets available to ORED, including funding allocated to low carbon investment in Budget 2009, are as set out in the following table. In addition, ORED will also be delivering projects funded from the Strategic Investment Fund managed by BIS; this additional funding amounts to up to £135.5 million over the next two years.
| ORED Budgets | ||
| £ million | ||
| 2009-10 | 2010-11 | |
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what (a) seminars and (b) workshops (i) have been held and (ii) are planned to be held as part of Ofgem’s RPI minus X at 20 review. [289883]
Mr. Kidney: These are matters for Ofgem. I have asked the chairman to respond directly to the hon. Member, and a copy of the response will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what working groups have been set up as part of Ofgem’s RPI minus X at 20 review. [289884]
Mr. Kidney: These are matters for Ofgem. I have asked the chairman to respond directly to the hon. Member, and a copy of the response will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what meetings (a) the Secretary of State and (b) other Ministers in his Department have had with Ofgem to discuss its RPI minus X at 20 review. [289886]
Mr. Kidney: Ministers have had a number of meetings with Ofgem in the past year to discuss a range of issues including the regulation and development of energy infrastructure.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent estimate has been made by the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets of the level of average (a) gas and (b) electricity bills in (i) England, (ii) Wales, (iii) Scotland and (iv) each English region. [289885]
Mr. Kidney: Markets produces estimates of domestic household energy bills. Latest estimates reflect current prices as at June 2009 prices, and are available online at:
http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Media/FactSheets/Documentsl/updatedhouseholdbills09.pdf
For an average consumer using 3,300 kWh of electricity and 20,500 kWh of gas per year and paying their bills on receipt (standard credit), June 2009 prices indicate an average annual electricity bill of £445 and the average gas bill was £800. Ofgem does not produce estimates of bills at regional levels.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when Ofgem began its RPI minus X at 20 review; what the timetable of the review is; and if he will make a statement. [289887]
Mr. Kidney: These are matters for Ofgem. I have asked the chairman to respond directly to the hon. Member, and a copy of his response will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 23 March 2009, Official Report, column 171W, on energy: consumers, when he expects Ofgem to have completed its consideration of other means which can be used to promote supplier switching. [290028]
Mr. Kidney: Ofgem published its detailed proposals for promoting supplier switching on 7 August 2009. The proposals include better information on bills, annual statements and a customer switching guarantee to simplify the switching process. Some of these will be implemented in October 2009 and the whole package will be in place by April 2010.
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions he has had with Ofgem on the relationship between domestic energy bills and energy prices; and if he will make a statement. [292386]
Mr. Kidney: DECC Ministers are in regular contact with the regulator on many factors affecting consumer bills. On 18 September Ofgem published its most recent Quarterly Report on wholesale costs and retail prices. These Quarterly Reports were initiated in response to a request from Government and the most recent is the third.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much has spent by (a) the Energy Saving Trust and (b) the Carbon Trust on opinion polling in each of the last five years. [289790]
Joan Ruddock: The Energy Saving Trust do not spend the DECC grant fund on opinion polling. Instead, this activity would be funded using EST corporate funds. Therefore, we are unable to provide these details.
According to the Carbon Trust, they mainly carry out business research but occasionally do consumer opinion polling in specific areas and, in the last five years, have spent an estimated total of £18,000 on this.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the difference between the average price of a litre of petrol in rural and non-rural areas in each year since 1997. [290258]
Mr. Kidney: DECC do not collect or publish prices of petrol split by rural and non-rural areas.
Data on average monthly UK petrol prices are published in Table 4.1.1 of Quarterly Energy Prices. The latest edition was published in June 2009 and is available online at
http://decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/publications/prices/prices.aspx
Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what representations he has received regarding the power cut at Dartford Creek cable bridge on Monday 20 July; and if he will make a statement. [290928]
Joan Ruddock [holding answer 9 September 2009]: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change did not receive any representations regarding the power cut at Dartford Creek cable bridge on 20 July.
Officials from the Department were in regular contact with EDF Energy Networks and kept Ministers informed throughout the incident.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 486W—continued
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change for which non-departmental public bodies his Department is responsible. [291157]
Joan Ruddock [ holding answer 14 September 2009]: DECC is responsible for:
Civil Nuclear Police Authority
Coal Authority
Committee on Climate Change
Nuclear Decommissioning Authority
Advisory Committee on Carbon Abatement Technologies
Committee on Radioactive Waste Management
Fuel Poverty Advisory Group
Nuclear Liabilities Financing Assurance Board
Renewables Advisory Board
UK Chemical Weapons Convention National Authority Advisory Committee
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change from which countries (a) radioactive waste and (b) spent fuel has been received but not yet returned; and what the (i) radioactivity level and (ii) quantity held is in each case. [288420]
Mr. Kidney [holding answer 21 July 2009]: The UK does not allow the import of higher activity radioactive waste, but overseas used nuclear fuel has been received, stored and reprocessed under contract at Sellafield and Dounreay.
All new overseas reprocessing contracts signed since 1976 have contained an option for the radioactive waste arising from such reprocessing to be returned to its country of origin. In 1986 Government took the decision that this option should be exercised.
During this time spent fuel has been received at Sellafield for reprocessing from Japan, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Italy and Sweden. To date, waste has been returned to Sweden as a result of reprocessing.
High Level Waste will be returned in a solid glass (vitrified) form and preparations are currently under way to make the return of vitrified High Level Waste to overseas customers with reprocessing contracts at Sellafield. Due to commercial constraints we are unable to detail the radioactivity level and quantity held for each customer but the total amount of overseas spent fuel to be reprocessed under new reprocessing contracts signed since 1976 is around 4,500 tonnes.
Reprocessing no longer takes place at Dounreay. Countries from which spent fuel has been received but not yet returned:
| Country | Kg HM (kilograms heavy metal) |
| (1) Australian spent fuel has already been reprocessed and 53 drums of cemented raffinate waste is now held on their behalf. Due to an oversight, Australia was not included in a previous answer given on 1 February 2006, Official Report, column 552W (2) Material received in Dounreay from Georgia will remain in the UK for international security reasons. (3) Spanish spent fuel has already been reprocessed and the quantity of waste arising was so small (less than one thousandth of a drum of cemented raffinate waste) that it was agreed to retain in the UK. A further batch of spent fuel has also been received from Spain but was sent on, still in the form of spent fuel, to a third overseas party. | |
UK spent fuel has also been permanently exchanged for a similar amount of French spent fuel under a research and development programme.
It is not possible to give current radioactivity levels for the material in the table above as the levels on receipt would be considerably different from those today. To attempt to calculate notional radioactivity levels from the above weights could give an erroneous result.
Waste will be returned to the countries of origin as required by the fuel reprocessing contracts.
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the likely effects of the EU red impact project on partitioning, transmutation and waste reduction, on the long-term management of radioactivity in the UK. [291505]
Mr. Kidney: In making recommendations to Government on the long-term management of higher activity radioactive waste in 2006, the independent Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM) stated that there was
“no proof of concept for partitioning and transmutation and that the cost would be disproportionate to benefits derived”.
This supported the outcome of a study done by the previous Government advisory committee, the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee (RWMAC) in 2003.
Government accepted CoRWM’s primary recommendations that geological disposal coupled with safe and secure interim storage was the best way forward and set out its framework for implementing geological disposal in the Managing Radioactive Waste Safely White Paper in June 2008.
While Government policy is to pursue geological disposal, the White Paper recognised the need to take account of developments in storage and disposal options, as well as possible new technologies and solutions. The White Paper also set out that the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority will keep developments under review and this will include the outputs from the EU Red Impact project in which they have been involved.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the cost of conducting the consultation on offshore electricity transmission was. [289783]
Mr. Kidney: The Government Impact Assessment (IA), which accompanied the final Offshore Transmission Consultation Document in March 2009, estimated the total cost to DECC and Ofgem in the four years of developing the new offshore transmission regime to be £3.4 million. This included internal staff, technical, legal and economic costs and the costs of consultancy. It covered the development of proposals, drafting instructions for modifications to codes and licences, and including provisions in the Energy Act 2008. The IA also showed the estimated net benefit of the new regime to be £925 million and is available at:
http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file50576.pdf
National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET), in its role as GB System Operator Designate, incurred costs of £1.563 million in helping to develop the regime. NGET's costs have been approved as economic and efficient by the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority.
http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/NETWORKS/OFFTRANS/PDC/CDR/CONS2009/Documentsl/AA5A%20letter%20FINAL.pdf
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress he has made on developing the National Action Plan for the EU Renewable Energy Directive. [289857]
Mr. Kidney: We have recently published our Renewable Energy Strategy for the UK (available in the Library or on the DECC website) setting out the policies and actions we will take to deliver 15 per cent. of our energy from renewable sources by 2020. This will form the basis for the National Action Plan to be submitted to the EU Commission by summer 2010.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment he has made of the effects of the economic downturn on levels of finance available for the development of renewable energy. [289773]
Mr. Kidney: DECC is in regular contact with the renewables industry and finance community to assess the impact of the downturn on the development and deployment of renewable energy technologies. There are credit constraints in the venture capital markets supporting new technology development and demonstration and similar pressures in funding the deployment of small and medium-sized technologies such as onshore wind. We are working closely with the renewables industry and banks to address the challenges which developers face in accessing finance.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what projects the Renewables Deployment Office (a) has undertaken since its establishment and (b) plans to undertake. [289777]
Mr. Kidney: The Office for Renewable Energy Deployment (ORED) was launched on 15 July 2009. ORED’s mission is to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy in order to reduce carbon emissions, increase security of supply and create business opportunities in the UK.
ORED is responsible for taking forward the commitments in the Government’s Renewable Energy Strategy, published in July 2009. This work includes:
Putting in place appropriate financial incentives to support the take-up of renewable energy, including reform of the Renewables Obligation; introducing Feed-in-Tariffs for small-scale electricity; and a new Renewable Heat Incentive;
Overcoming the non-financial barriers to the deployment of wind and other technologies, including supporting reforms to ensure an effective planning system is in place at a local and regional level;
Promoting the use of sustainable bio-energy;
Supporting the cost-effective deployment of wave and tidal technologies, including taking forward the feasibility study on Severn Tidal Power;
Overcoming supply chain blockages and promoting business opportunities in the renewable sector in the UK.
This work involves engaging with a wide range of external stakeholders. To assist with this, the office is recruiting a part-time, non-executive expert chair to liaise with industry and other stakeholders, and help build a strong reputation for ORED as a delivery body.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether his Department plans to make a submission to the Scottish Executive's National Conversation consultation on Scotland's constitutional future. [288945]
Joan Ruddock: The Department of Energy and Climate Change has not submitted evidence to the Scottish Government's National Conversation.
The Commission on Scottish Devolution was established by majority vote in the Scottish Parliament and with the full support of the UK Government. UK Departments submitted evidence to the Commission during its first phase of evidence gathering. This included evidence prepared by DECC.
The Commission published its final report on 15 June 2009, which can be found here:
http://www.commissiononscottishdevolution.org.uk/uploads/2009-06-12-csd-final-report-2009fbookmarked.pdf
A Steering Group has been established under the Chairmanship of the Secretary of State for Scotland to help the UK Government and the Scottish Parliament plan how to take forward the Calman recommendations and deliver stronger devolution within a stronger United Kingdom.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate has received a report from Sellafield Limited on the contamination event which took place on 20 June 2008 at the Sellafield site. [289714]
Mr. Kidney: I can confirm that the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate has received such a report from Sellafield Limited, and that it is satisfied that a thorough investigation has been carried out by the company.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate wrote to Sellafield Limited requesting a revised statement of strategy for the future safe storage of highly active liquor; whether a reply has been received; and if he will make a statement. [289715]
Mr. Kidney: I can confirm that such a letter was written on 11 February 2008. Sellafield Limited's responses have formed part of its biennial submissions to HSE's Nuclear Directorate both last year and this year. A summary of the Nuclear Directorate's initial assessment was reported to the West Cumbria Site Stakeholder Group earlier this year, and the Nuclear Directorate will continue to report progress to that group, and post these reports on HSE's website.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will place in the Library a copy of specification 679 issued by the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate in relation to the holding of highly active liquor at Sellafield. [289716]
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (1) pursuant to the answer of 23 March 2009, Official Report, column 86W, on industrial health and safety: Sellafield, on what dates Nuclear Installation Inspectorate specifications numbers 324, 325 and 326 were issued; [290022]
(2) what the due date is for each Nuclear Installation Inspectorate specification; [290023]
(3) if he will place in the Library a copy of Nuclear Installation Inspectorate specifications numbers 324, 325 and 326; [290024]
(4) if he will place in the Library a copy of the letter from the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate to Sellafield Ltd of 29 September 2008. [290025]
Mr. Kidney: Specification numbers 324, 325 and 326 were issued on 4 August 2000 and a copy of each will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Part (a) by 1 August 2004 (completed).
Part (b) by 1 August 2004 (completed).
Part (c) by 1 August 2010
Part (d) by 1 August 2016.
Part (a) by 1 August 2009;.
Part (b) by 1 August 2010.
Part (a) by 1 August 2020.
Part (b) by 1 August 2020.
A copy of the letter to Sellafield Ltd. dated 29 September 2008 will be placed in the Libraries of the House in response to UIN 290025.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 491W—continued
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department is taking to implement the recommendations of the Sustainable Development Commission's report Prosperity without growth? The transition to a sustainable economy, which fall within its responsibility. [289794]
Joan Ruddock: The Sustainable Development Commission's report contains one recommendation on which DECC leads: “Imposing Clearly Defined Resource/emission Caps”. The Climate Change Act commits the Government to reductions in emissions of at least 80 per cent. by 2050, and creates a system of five-year carbon budgets to ensure this target is delivered. The level of the first three carbon budgets (2008-22) was set through secondary legislation in May 2009. The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan, published in July 2009, sets out how the first three carbon budgets will be delivered. Delivery of the carbon budgets is enabled by policies including trading schemes which set specific caps, in particular the European Emissions Trading System which covers about half of UK emissions, and the forthcoming Carbon Reduction Commitment.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 2 April 2009, Official Report, column 1369W, on the Warm Front Scheme, what average sum was paid by Eaga to its suppliers for (a) energy efficiency light bulbs, (b) draught proofing and (c) hot water tank jackets in the latest period for which figures are available. [289723]
Mr. Kidney: The prices paid by Eaga to its suppliers are commercially confidential.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many households have received a product of financial value through the Warm Front scheme in each year since 2002. [289793]
Mr. Kidney: The number of households assisted through the Warm Front scheme in each year since 2002 is set out in the following table:
| Scheme year | Number of households assisted |
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the amount of Eaga’s Warm Front hardship fund has been in each year since 2000. [289880]
Mr. Kidney: Since 2006 Eaga plc has provided financial assistance to some of those Warm Front clients who were unable to meet the cost of an excess contribution required for work to be done. The amounts spent by Eaga, in this respect, in each year since 2006 are provided in the following table:
| Fund (£000) | |
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he expects mid-contract renegotiations with Eaga on the Warm Front scheme to have been completed; and if he will make a statement. [289881]
Mr. Kidney: I refer the hon. Member to my letter of 21 July 2009 concerning the contract to manage the Warm Front Scheme between the Department and Eaga. I will arrange for a copy of this letter to be placed in the Library of the House.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2009, Official Report, column 333W, on the Warm Front scheme, what process was used to select Procuritas to review his Department's management of its contract with Eaga. [290030]
Mr. Kidney: The appointment of Procuritas was undertaken following a review by DEFRA policy, legal and procurement advisors of those organisations with the capacity, skills and resource able to complete the work to the required timescale.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2009, Official Report, column 333W, on the Warm Front scheme, what the monetary value is of the contract between his Department and Procuritas. [290031]
Mr. Kidney: This information is commercially confidential.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2009, Official Report, column 333W, on the Warm Front scheme, if he will place in the Library a copy of the contract between his Department and Procuritas. [290032]
Mr. Kidney: This information is commercially confidential.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 25 March 2009, Official Report, column 503W, on the Warm Front scheme, what the average cost of supplying energy-efficient light bulbs is to a customer who receives only that service under the Warm Front scheme. [290033]
Mr. Kidney: The cost of providing two compact fluorescent light bulbs under the Warm Front Scheme is currently £8.32 per household.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 25 March 2009, Official Report, column 503W, on the Warm Front scheme, which months were included in the calculation of the figures given for 2008-09. [290034]
Mr. Kidney: The figures given for 2008-09 covered the period 1 April 2008 to 31 January 2009.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 10 March 2009, Official Report, column 410W, on the Warm Front scheme, at which point in the procurement process his Department ceases to be a party to the contract for the supply of heating materials used in Warm Front scheme installations. [290277]
Mr. Kidney: The responsibility for the procurement of heating materials used under the scheme lies with Eaga plc, the scheme administrator.
The Department was party to the contracts for the supply of heating materials until they were novated to Eaga plc. The dates at which the contracts with each contracted supplier were novated to Eaga were 1 April 2008 and 2 March 2009 for Wolseley and Graham Group respectively.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the number of individuals who undertook contractual inspection work under the Warm Front Scheme before the inception of the technical inspector qualification; and how many people have obtained that qualification. [291833]
Mr. Kidney: Prior to September 2009, 76 individuals had undertaken inspection work for Warm Front.
By 1 May 2010 all Warm Front inspectors will require a higher level of Gas Safe qualification. The process of assessing training requirements of current inspectors is still underway.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will commission a review of Eaga’s performance in carrying out its contractual obligations for the Warm Front scheme; and if he will make a statement. [291131]
Joan Ruddock [holding answer 14 September 2009]: DECC has recently completed a review of the contract with the main contractor and Scheme administrator, Eaga plc. This has resulted in a revised set of contractual arrangements between DECC and Eaga which will result in increased value for money and improvements in the service Warm Front provides to its customers.
DECC performs monthly reviews of Eaga’s performance against contractual service level indicators. In addition DECC commissions regular audits to ensure Warm Front is delivered in accordance with contractual requirements.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the cost to an individual to train for the qualification of technical inspector for the Warm Front scheme; and if he will make a statement. [291062]
Joan Ruddock [holding answer 14 September 2009]: At present all Warm Front gas heating inspectors are required to have the Gas Safe CCN1 certification. However, from 1 May 2010, all inspectors will be required to have full Gas Safe registration. The employment of inspectors is undertaken by Eaga plc, in their role as main contractor and Scheme Administrator. DECC has made no estimate of the costs involved in training these inspectors.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what discussions he has had with local authorities on the implications for their energy-from-waste facilities of the UK Renewable Energy Strategy published on 15 July 2009. [291987]
Mr. Kidney: DECC officials meet regularly with local authorities and DEFRA officials to discuss a range of climate and energy issues, including energy-from-waste.
Local authorities have a key leadership role in successfully delivering the UK Renewable Energy Strategy and diverting increasing levels of waste from landfill into reuse, recycling and energy recovery.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what funding his Department and its predecessors have provided for the development of marine energy technologies since 2003. [289650]
Mr. Kidney: The Department has previously provided support totalling £35 million for the industry-led development of marine energy technologies through the former DTI Technology Programme—now administered by the Technology Strategy Board—and support of £9 million for high quality basic science through the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council’s ‘Supergen Marine’ consortium.
DECC has its own support scheme in place for the commercial demonstration of wave and tidal stream technologies—the £50 million Marine Renewables Deployment Fund (MRDF). We are now in the process of designing, in conjunction with the sector, a new £22 million Marine Renewables Proving Fund as announced in Low Carbon Transition Plan.
DECC has also supported the development of marine energy technology through investing in testing facilities such as the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) and the New and Renewable Energy Centre (NaREC). The Government recently announced a package of measures in its Low Carbon Transition Plan that further investment would be made in upgrading and expanding the testing facilities at EMEC (£8 million) and NaREC (£10 million), together with an increase of its contribution towards the planned Wave Hub project off the coast of Cornwall to £9.5 million.
DECC is also contributing to a £534,000 fund to support the development of embryonic technologies for a possible Severn tidal power scheme.
Under the Renewables Obligation wave and tidal energy suppliers will receive two Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs) for each MWh of eligible generation produced.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many operational marine power schemes are connected to the electricity grid; and what the (a) generating capacity and (b) quantity of electricity generated by each in 2008 was. [289653]
(a) There were three marine energy devices connected to the electricity grid in 2008.
Wavegen—500 kW
SeaGen—1.2 MW
Open Hydro—250 kW
(b) The following figures are taken from the Ofgem Renewables register.
Wavegen (now Voith Hydro Wavegen) “Limpet” device deployed on the Isle of Islay generated 42 MWh.
SeaGen—owned by Sea Generation Ltd/Marine Current Turbines and deployed in Strangford Lough, Northern Ireland generated 13 MWh.
Open Hydro, deployed at the European Marine Energy Centre, Orkney are not accredited for the Renewables Obligation and no data is available for 2008.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 24 June, Official Report, columns 60-62WS, on the Offshore Energy Strategic Environmental Assessment, what estimate he has made of the number of offshore wind turbines that will be constructed in each year until 2020. [289615]
Mr. Kidney: The actual number and rate of offshore turbines deployed each year will depend on choices made by the market relating to the timing and location specifics of construction for individual projects, as well as the size and type of turbines chosen.
On the basis of the Government's plan for some 25GW by 2020 referred to in the ministerial statement of 24 June, we might expect to see between 5,000-7,000 turbines constructed over the period to 2020. Along with existing plans for some 8GW of offshore wind generation already at various stages of planning, the total number of turbines deployed offshore could be around 10,000 turbines by 2020. Advances in technology may mean that in future there could be fewer, but larger, turbines deployed.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions his Department has had with industry representatives on the temporary increase of support for offshore wind through the Renewables Obligation. [289724]
Mr. Kidney: DECC officials and Ministers have regular discussions and meetings with the offshore wind industry, both individually and collectively, concerning the deployment of offshore wind. These can cover generic issues or can be in relation to specific projects’ particular concerns around for example planning, and grid access. Recent meetings with industry representatives have involved discussions about whether there is a need for an increase in support for offshore wind through the Renewables Obligation.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the evidential basis is for the proposed criteria for selecting offshore wind projects to receive temporary increases in support under the Renewables Obligation. [289725]
Mr. Kidney: The evidential basis for launching a review of the level of support for offshore wind under the Renewables Obligation is the report “Cost of and financial support for offshore wind”, produced for DECC by Ernst and Young, and available at
http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file51142.pdf
The proposed criteria for determining eligibility for any increase in support are subject to consultation, and we have welcomed views and further evidence as part of the consultation process which closes on 15 October.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 496W—continued
Charles Hendry:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress has been made on the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate's investigation into the event on 6 August
2008 at Wylfa nuclear power station when graphite samples were withdrawn with the reactor at full power; and if he will make a statement. [289720]
Mr. Kidney: The investigation by the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate into this incident is complete. The incident is classified as level 1 under the International Atomic Energy Agency's International Nuclear Events Scale. This level is defined as “an anomaly beyond the authorised operating regime” and is one class above the lowest category of 0. The facility operator, Magnox North Ltd, is legally obliged by its nuclear site licence to provide adequate arrangements for investigating incidents on the site and conducted an investigation into the August 2008 incident. In line with its established policy for such incidents, the Nuclear Directorate's investigation consisted of a review of Magnox North Ltd's own investigation, which it supplemented with further scrutiny of the cause of the incident during the 2009 planned outage of the facility. The Directorate's conclusion was that Magnox North Ltd had dealt with the incident satisfactorily. The key change made as a result of the investigation was that Magnox North Ltd put in place arrangements to improve compliance with all the requirements of the safety case for Wylfa nuclear power station.
Mrs. Spelman:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 14 July 2009, Official Report, column 310W, on 62 Eaton Place, on what date the searches contained in the home information pack for 62 South Eaton Place were (a) commissioned and (b) produced; and what assessment
has been made of the duration of the validity of the results of such searches. [291079]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 14 September 2009]: Preparation of the Home Information Pack was commissioned in summer 2008 and completed on 19 September 2008. There is no legal requirement to update the pack and marketing of the property does not require it.
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many penalty notices for disorder in relation to the sale of alcohol to a person under 18 years of age were issued in each police force area in (a) 2007-08 and (b) 2008-09; what the average fine levied in each police force area was in each such year; and how many such fines have not been paid. [290691]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The number of Penalty Notices for Disorder (PNDs) issued in England and Wales for the sale of alcohol to a person aged under 18 years of age in 2006 and 2007 (latest available), by Police Force Area and outcome, can be found in the following tables. (The Ministry of Justice publish PND data by calendar year rather than by financial year).
The offence, which attracts a fixed penalty of £80, was added to the Scheme in November 2004. 21 days is the minimum period before which forces can register a fine against the recipient for not responding to a notice, so forces can accept payments after the Suspended Enforcement Period for administrative purposes. From the data held centrally, it is not possible to separately identify the fine amounts registered nor the number of unpaid fines.
PND data for 2008 will be available towards the end of 2009.
| Table 1: Number of penalty notices for disorder issued and outcomes for the offence “Sale of alcohol to a person aged under 18”, England and Wales, broken down by Police force area, 2006( 1) | ||||||||
| Outcome | ||||||||
| Police force area | Issued | Paid in full within 21 days | Paid in full outside 21 days | Fine registered | Court hearing requested | PND cancelled | Potential prosecution | Outcome unknown |
| (1) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Source: Evidence and Analysis Unit—Office for Criminal Justice Reform. | ||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 500W—continued
| Table 2: Number of penalty notices for disorder issued and outcomes for the offence “Sale of alcohol to a person aged under 18”, England and Wales, broken down by Police Force Area, 2007( 1) | ||||||||
| Outcome | ||||||||
| Issued | Paid in full within 21 days | Paid in full outside 21 days | Fine registered | Court hearing requested | PND cancelled | Potential prosecution | Outcome unknown | |
| (1) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Source: Evidence and Analysis Unit—Office for Criminal Justice Reform. | ||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 502W—continued
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons were (a) prosecuted and (b) cautioned for selling alcohol to a person under the age of 18 years in each police force area in (i) 2007-08 and (ii) 2008-09. [290692]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 9 September 2009]: I refer the hon. Member to Table 2 in the answer I gave on 3 February 2009, Official Report, column 1024W. Data for 2008 will be available in autumn 2009.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many visits to animal testing facilities have been undertaken by staff in his Department in each of the last three years. [290351]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The number of visits made by Home Office staff to establishments designated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in each of the last three years was as follows:
| Visits | |
All but four of these visits were undertaken by members of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Inspectorate.
Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of procedures regulated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 carried out in Scotland in 2008 were conducted without anaesthesia. [291589]
Mr. Alan Campbell: There were a total of 555,567 regulated procedures started under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in Scotland in 2008 of which 376,937 (68 per cent.) used no form of anaesthesia.
Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of the project licences granted under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in force in Scotland at the end of 2008 were in the (a) mild, (b) moderate, (c) substantial and (d) unclassified severity banding. [291590]
Mr. Alan Campbell: During 2008, in Scotland, 39 per cent. of the project licences granted under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 were in the mild severity banding, 57 per cent. in moderate, one per cent. in substantial and three per cent. were unclassified.
Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) mice, (b) rats, (c) guinea pigs, (d) hamsters, (e) rabbits, (f) horses and other equids, (g) sheep, (h) pigs, (i) birds, (j) amphibians, (k) reptiles, (l) fish, (m) cats, (n) dogs, (o) New World primates and (p) Old World primates were used in procedures conducted in Scotland and regulated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in 2008. [291591]
Mr. Alan Campbell: During 2008, in Scotland, there were 290,081 mice, 49,009 rats, 2,428 guinea pigs, 688 hamsters, 2,571 rabbits, nine horses and other equids, 4,802 sheep, 883 pigs, 6,193 birds, 383 amphibians, 184,335 fish, eight cats, 994 dogs, 30 new world primates and 899 old world primates used in regulated procedures started under the 1986 Act. No reptiles were used.
Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individual animals were used in procedures regulated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in Scotland in 2008. [291592]
Mr. Alan Campbell: During 2008, in Scotland, there were 544,949 animals used in regulated procedures started under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.
Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the regulated procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 were conducted in Scotland in 2008 involved (a) cats, (b) dogs, (c) rabbits, (d) horses and other equids, (e) New World primates and (f) Old World primates which (i) were genetically modified and (ii) had a harmful genetic defect. [291820]
Mr. Alan Campbell: In 2008 there were no such procedures in Scotland nor in Great Britain as a whole (Table 3, Statistics of Scientific Procedures on Living Animals Great Britain 2008, available from the Library of the House and from the Department’s website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/scientific1.html.
Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of the regulated procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 which were conducted in Scotland in 2008 were carried out for (a) fundamental and applied studies other than toxicology and (b) toxicity tests or other safety and efficacy evaluation. [291821]
Mr. Alan Campbell: During 2008, in Scotland, the number of regulated procedures started for non-toxicological purposes under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 was 500,133 (90 per cent.), and the number started for toxicological purposes was 55,434 (10 per cent.).
Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of the regulated procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 which were conducted in Scotland in 2008 were performed in (a) public health laboratories, (b) universities and medical schools, (c) national health service hospitals, (d) Government Departments, (e) other public bodies, (f) non-profit making organisations and (g) commercial organisations. [291822]
Mr. Alan Campbell: During 2008, in Scotland the total number of procedures started under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 was 555,567. Of these, 417,734 or 75 per cent. were carried out at Universities or Medical Schools, 26,823 or 5 per cent at Government Departments, 52,100 or 9 per cent. at other public bodies, and 58.910 or 11 per cent. at commercial organisations. None were started at public health laboratories, NHS hospitals or non-profit making organisations.
Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many regulated procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 were carried out in Scotland in 2008. [291824]
Mr. Alan Campbell: A total of 544,949 animals were used in regulated procedures started under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in Scotland in 2008, of which, 177,221 were genetically modified and 15,238 were animals with a harmful genetic defect.
Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) genetically modified animals and (b) animals with a harmful genetic defect were used in regulated procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 which were conducted in Scotland in 2008. [291825]
Mr. Alan Campbell: A total of 544,949 animals were used in regulated procedures started under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in Scotland in 2008, of which 177,221 were genetically modified and 15,238 were animals with a harmful genetic defect.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many anti-social behaviour orders in each category are in force in relation to residents in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire. [289430]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The latest available published data on the number of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued covers the period 1 April 1999 to 31 December 2007 and are not available below Criminal Justice System (CJS) area level.
The number of ASBOs issued at all courts in the Hertfordshire Criminal Justice System area on application and the number issued following conviction is 58 and 156 respectively, a total of 214.
ASBOs can be of a fixed duration (for a minimum of two years) or made until further order. It is therefore not possible to determine from centrally collected data how many ASBOs are in force at a particular point in time.
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will undertake an evaluation of the effectiveness of the use of control orders in the UK. [291710]
Mr. Hanson: The effectiveness of all current control orders is regularly kept under review to ensure that they, and the obligations they impose, remain necessary and proportionate, and that the control order regime more generally is as effective as possible. I would refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement in relation to control orders published on 16 September 2009 which provides an update on the review of the control order regime in the light of the recent House of Lords' judgment in AF and others.
Mr. Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many assaults on police community support officers while on duty were recorded in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [289158]
Mr. Hanson: Data for the numbers of assaults on police officers and operational police staff for 2003-04 and 2004-05 can be found in the HMIC Annual Report 2004-05, available in the Library of the House.
These data are not available by individual rank and therefore appear in the report as a combined figure for officers, PCSOs and other operational support staff.
Data for the numbers of assaults on police community support officers for 2005-06 to 2007-08 are also available in the House Library.
Assaults data are collected on behalf on Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary who use the data for inspection purposes and have agreed to the release of these figures.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been refused asylum or leave to remain in the UK but cannot be removed because (a) they are from a country to which removals are not being enforced and (b) his Department has not been able to obtain travel documents to enable their return since the Case Resolution Directorate was set up; and how many of those people are residing in the UK without a right to work or recourse to public funds. [288711]
Mr. Woolas: It is not possible to compile data on the number of people who fall into the requested categories after the refusal of their case. While the UK Border Agency produces regular statistics on the number of cases concluded over a specified period of time (the chief executive of the UK Border Agency, Lin Homer, updates the Home Affairs Select Committee twice a year on work to clear the historic backlog of unresolved asylum cases by summer 2011; a copy of Ms Homer's letter of 7 July 2009 is in the Library of the House), a case is only regarded as 'concluded' at the
point where the individual/s has/have either been granted some form of leave or been removed from the UK. To extract data on the number of applications (including both asylum and non-asylum case types) which have been refused but not yet concluded would require the detailed examination of individual case records at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Davidson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers in receipt of housing and financial support have waited more than one year for an initial interview; and if he will make a statement. [289989]
Mr. Woolas: The UK Border Agency does not collate data on the length of time that asylum seekers have to wait for their asylum interview to take place. This information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost by undertaking a search of case records relating to all applications by supported asylum seekers which remain outstanding at the present time.
Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what percentage of Christian asylum seekers have been granted asylum in each of the last five years; [291502]
(2) what percentage of Muslim asylum seekers have been granted asylum in each of the last five years. [291503]
Mr. Woolas: The available management information on the percentage of initial decisions which were grants of asylum on applications for asylum made by people recorded as being Christian or Muslim is given in the following table:
| Asylum grants as percentage of initial decisions, 2007-09( 1) | |||
| Percentage | |||
| 2007 | 2008 | 2009( 1) | |
| (1 )January to date. Note: Figures relate to initial decisions in these years based on first time main asylum applicants only. Religion is based on information ascertained from the applicant. Christian and Muslim figures are based on all practices within each faith. The percentage figures represent asylum (Refugee Leave) grants only and exclude Humanitarian Protection and Discretionary Leave. Asylum grants could have been made on any of the criteria in the 1951 UN Refugee Convention—i.e. not restricted to religious persecution. | |||
These figures are compiled from internal management information and do not constitute part of National Statistics as they are based on internal management information. The information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols, should be treated as provisional and is subject to change.
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Afghan nationals are seeking asylum. [291828]
Mr. Woolas: In last full year for which the statistics are available (2008), 3,505 principal applicants from Afghanistan applied for asylum. 2008 figures are provisional.
Information on asylum applications is published annually and quarterly in the Control of Immigration statistical bulletins. Copies of these publications are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Afghan nationals have been given permission to remain in the UK in each of the last five years. [291829]
Mr. Woolas: The following tables show the number of Afghan nationals given permission to stay in each of the last five years (2004 to 2008), according to their immigration status (i.e. asylum-related grants, grants of an extension of leave to remain and grants of settlement).
Further statistics on immigration control are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html.
| Table 1: Asylum grants( 1, 2) on initial decision( 3) for nationals of Afghanistan | ||||
| Grants of asylum | Grants of humanitarian protection | Grants of discretionary leave | Total | |
| (1) Figures rounded to the nearest 5 (— = 0, * = 1 or 2) and may not sum to the totals shown because of independent rounding. (2 )Excludes dependants. (3 )Information is of initial decisions, excluding the outcome of appeals or other subsequent decisions. (4 )Provisional. | ||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 507W—continued
| Table 2: Grants of an extension of leave to remain( 1, 2) in the United Kingdom for nationals of Afghanistan | |
| Number of grants | |
| (1) Figures rounded to the nearest 5 (— = 0, * = 1 or 2). (2 )Excludes dependants of principal applicants, asylum related decisions and withdrawn applications. (3 )Provisional. Note: Includes reconsideration cases and the outcome of appeals. | |
| Table 3: Grants of settlement( 1, 2, 3, 4) in the United Kingdom for nationals of Afghanistan | |
| Number of persons | |
| (1) Figures rounded to the nearest 5 (— = 0, * = 1 or 2). (2 )Includes dependants, reconsideration cases and the outcome of appeals. (3 )Also includes asylum-related cases and therefore may include persons counted in Table 1. (4 )Data from 2003 exclude dependants of EEA and Swiss nationals in confirmed relationships granted permanent residence. (5 )Provisional. | |
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers have been returned to the Democratic Republic of Congo in each of the last five years. [290015]
Mr. Woolas: The following table shows the number of asylum cases who were removed or departed voluntarily from the United Kingdom to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) between January 2004 and March 2009.
Figures for the second quarter of 2009 was published on 27 August 2009.
During 2008, enforced removals of asylum cases to the Democratic Republic of Congo were deferred until a Court of Appeal judgment, which was handed down on 3 December.
Published statistics on immigration and asylum are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
| Removals and voluntary departures( 1) of asylum cases( 2) to the Democratic Republic of Congo, January 2004 to March 2009 | ||||||
| Number of departures( 3, 4) | ||||||
| 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007( 5) | 2008( 5) | January to March 2009( 5) | |
| (1) Figures are rounded to the nearest 5 (— = 0, * = 1 or 2) and may not sum to the totals shown because of independent rounding. (2) Includes persons departing voluntarily after notifying the UK Border Agency of their intention to leave prior to their departure, persons leaving under Assisted Voluntary Return Programmes run by the International Organisation for Migration and since January 2005, persons who it has been established left the UK without informing the immigration authorities. (3) Removals and voluntary departures recorded on the system as at the dates on which the data extracts were taken. (4) Destination as recorded on source database. (5) Provisional figures. Figures will under record due to data cleansing and data matching exercises that take place after the extracts are taken. (6) Figures exclude dependants. | ||||||
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for asylum from residents of the Democratic Republic of Congo have been rejected in each of the last five years. [290016]
Mr. Woolas: Asylum information on residents of the Democratic Republic of Congo is unavailable. However, the number of principal asylum applicants, who were refused asylum at initial decision, from nationals of the Democratic Republic of Congo were 1,540 in 2004, 985 in 2005, 470 in 2006, 315 in 2007 and 185 in 2008 (figures are rounded to the nearest five and 2007 and 2008 are provisional).
Information on asylum decisions is published annually and quarterly. The latest version was published on 27 August 2009 and is available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum applicants were removed from the UK under the terms of the Dublin Convention in 2008. [291426]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 26 September 2009]: In 2008, under the Dublin Convention and Dublin Regulations II, 1,242 asylum seekers were removed.
These data are normally used for management information only and are not subject to the detailed checks that apply for National Statistics publications. These data are provisional and may be subject to change.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many women considered to be at risk were accepted via the Gateway resettlement programme in each of the last five years. [291804]
Alan Johnson: UNHCR refers refugees to UKBA for resettlement consideration under a number of different categories including woman at risk. UKBA does not keep a record of the breakdown by resettlement category of refugees accepted via the Gateway programme.
Since 2008 for internal purposes a record has however been kept of the number of refugees referred by UNHCR to UKBA under the category of woman at risk. In calendar year 2008, 46 cases (150 refugees in total) were resettled under the Gateway Programme who had been referred under the category of woman at risk.
The figures quoted are not provided under National Statistics protocols and have been derived from local management information and are therefore provisional and subject to change.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effects of his Department’s introduction of gender guidelines on the asylum procedure. [291553]
Alan Johnson: The Asylum Instruction entitled “Gender Issues in the Asylum Claim” was introduced in early 2004. The instruction provides guidance to caseworkers considering claims for asylum where sexual or gender identity-related issues have been raised. The UKBA quality audit team checks compliance with all UKBA instructions in a proportion of decisions. This includes where relevant, whether the decision maker has followed the instruction on gender. The result of each audit is fed back to decision makers and managers to ensure quality of decisions improves and the quality team make additional recommendations on any issues which they feel impact on quality at national level to ensure these can be addressed.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of those who sought asylum cited a life threatening response to a change in religion as the main or a contributory factor in their application in each of the last five years. [290193]
Mr. Woolas: The UK Border Agency does not collate data on the reasons why individuals have claimed asylum. The requested information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost by examination of case files belonging to individuals who have claimed asylum in each of the last five years.
Information on asylum is published annually and quarterly. Asylum Statistics United Kingdom and the Asylum Bulletin are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what provision is made for those seeking asylum to have their initial interview conducted by a person of a specific religious affiliation. [290194]
Mr. Woolas: UK Border Agency case owners are trained to deal professionally and impartially with all types of asylum applications and a case owner’s faith should have no bearing upon his or her handling of an application. It would not be practical or desirable to exclude case owners from interviewing applicants due to the faith of either party. The UK Border Agency values the diversity of its workforce and it would be unacceptable to discriminate against those of a certain faith or ethnic background.
Mr. Davidson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers were supported in accommodation in each Parliamentary constituency in Scotland on the latest date for which figures are available. [289988]
Mr. Woolas: Information on asylum is published annually and quarterly. The Quarterly Control of Immigration Statistics Q2 2009 and the annual Control of Immigration Statistics 2008 were published on 27 August 2009 and are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
The breakdown of immigration statistics by parliamentary constituency is available from the Library of the House.
| Asylum seekers supported in accommodation( 1, 2, 3) in Scotland by parliamentary constituency, as at end of March 2009 | |
| Parliamentary constituency name( 4) | Number |
| (1) Provisional figures (other than percentages) rounded to the nearest 5 with “*” = 1 or 2. Figures may not sum to the totals shown because of independent rounding. (2) Excludes unaccompanied asylum-seeking children supported by local authorities, estimated around 4,500 in March 2009. (3) Excludes those in initial accommodation, 1,250 as at end of March 2009. (4) Only those parliamentary constituencies where dispersed cases are resident are shown. (5) Local authorities with fewer than 15 cases, when rounded, are grouped by region as “Other”. | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 511W—continued
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for asylum were received from Sri Lankan nationals in (a) May 2003, (b) May 2005, (c) May 2007 and (d) May 2009. [291427]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The number of asylum applications received from Sri Lankan principal applicants were (a) 100 in May 2003 (b) 35 in May 2005 (c) 100 in May 2007 and (d) 95 in May 2009. As is usual with the presentation of these statistics, all figures are rounded to the nearest five. 2009 figures are provisional.
Information on asylum applications is published annually and quarterly in the Control of Immigration statistical bulletins. Copies of these publications are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html.
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment he has made of the likely effect on check-in times at airports of the introduction of the e-borders system. [290647]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: E-Borders is already receiving data for inbound and outbound services from a diverse range of carriers, and has been, on a pilot basis, since January 2005.
The UK Border Agency considered the potential for delays at check-in when developing its ‘impact assessment’ in the provision of passenger, service and crew data, by carriers.
It concluded that the overall impact would be negligible. The growing trend within the industry is towards the sale of tickets and collection of data upstream, before the passenger arrives at the airport. The e-Borders system has been developed in consultation with the industry to cater for this trend.
The advance submission of TDI enables carriers to consider the options for the collection of the information that suits their business models and that will not extend check in times.
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment he has made of the effects on ferry passengers of the implementation of his Department's e-borders system. [290648]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The operational model for ferry traffic presents unique challenges in all locations. In recognition of this, we have focused on aviation in the first phase of the e-Borders rollout, to allow ferry operators time to prepare for implementation. We have established a Maritime Carrier Connectivity Working Group to examine cross cutting issues, as we have done with the aviation industry and we will continue to progress implementation with individual carriers via one-to-one meetings.
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what pilot programmes his Department conducted in respect of the e-borders system; and what assessment was made of each such programme. [290649]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: Project Semaphore was launched in November 2004 and was commissioned to run for 39 months to provide an operational prototype to trial e-Borders concepts and technology in order to inform and de-risk the e-Borders solution.
Project Semaphore demonstrated the value that advance passenger information adds to safety and security. This enables the UK authorities to intervene in a timely and proportionate manner, where an individual is identified as posing a risk. The Semaphore system captured data on over 53 million passenger movements from January 2005 to April 2008. Semaphore delivered significant successes to all border agencies, generating over 22,000 operational alerts resulting in over 1,700 arrests and other interventions in addition to significant counter terrorism benefits.
The Semaphore legacy system was transferred to operational business in April 2008 and is now managed by the e-Borders service provider, Trusted Borders and forms a key initial part of the main e-Borders’ solution.
Project IRIS, a pilot biometric automated barrier entry system for pre-registered passengers at selected ports in the UK. It was piloted from June 2005 to May 2006. IRIS enrolment stations and gates are available at all five Heathrow terminals and at Gatwick, Manchester and Birmingham airports.
IRIS was transferred to the operational business in July 2007. As of August 2009, over 326,000 persons are enrolled on the system, generating over 2 million crossings.
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of the cost to (a) the airline industry and ( b) airline passengers of the implementation of his Department's e-borders system. [290693]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The potential financial costs to the aviation industry of implementing the data collection requirements of the e-Borders Programme were analysed as part of a regulatory impact assessment published in January 2008.
It will be a commercial decision for the carriers as to whether they pass this cost on to the passengers.
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much his Department had spent on its e-borders project on 1 July 2009; and if he will make a statement. [290906]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The gross cost to Government of e-Borders. not including fee income, for the period from the start of the procurement phase (September 2005) through to 1 July 2009, was £300 million.
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what proportion of people (a) applying for citizenship and (b) applying for settlement passed the Knowledge of Life Test in each quarter since its inception. [291839]
Mr. Woolas: The figures requested by the hon. Member are as follows. These figures do not constitute part of National Statistics as they are based on internal management information. The information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols, should be treated as provisional and is subject to change.
| Citizenship | Settlement | |||
| Passes | Pass rate (percentage) | Passes | Pass rate (percentage) | |
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many contracts let by his Department in the last 12 months were related to the immigration casework database; and what the monetary value was of each such contract. [290905]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The Immigration Case Work programme stems from the immigration and nationality directorate (IND) review in 2006, which identified that the business has had to operate with systems that were not designed to cope with the scale of change and business volumes experienced in recent years.
The programme’s vision is to deliver a new immigration case working capability that will enable the UK Border Agency to operate with the levels of efficiency and service found in leading case working organisations. This will be achieved by delivering radical changes to business processes and improvements to the enabling IT systems. The programme has adopted recognised leading practice by scheduling the development and roll-out of the new systems over time; from the first pilot release in March 2009 to replacement of the legacy systems for protection in 2013 (as discussed with the Committee for Public Accounts earlier this year). The phased approach also ensures that the Agency can afford to fund the programme as part of its business plan. The programme is within budget.
In the last 12 months, the following contracts with their monetary values were let in relation to the new immigration casework database, Integrity.
Notes:
1. The following figures only cover IT contracts awarded by ICW, excluding contractors and consultants.
2. The monetary values exclude VAT.
| Contract | Monetary value of contract excluding VAT, gross figure (£) |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 515W—continued
In addition, a number of contracts have been let in the last 12 months in respect of changes made to the FCO Proviso system as part of the roll out of the Integrity solution. These are as follows:
James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made with the national deployment of IT-enabled procedures by HM Courts Service to transfer court results automatically to the Police National Computer. [287916]
Bridget Prentice: I have been asked to reply.
Deployment of the Bichard 7 solution automating results to the police national computer (PNC) is underway. As at 12 October 83 per cent. of criminal justice areas are automating their magistrates court results to the PNC.
The Crown Court solution automating results to PNC is scheduled to commence deployment in November 2009.
Bichard 7 is scheduled to complete deployment by March 2010.
Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his Department has made an assessment of the effects on levels of criminal activity on the availability of unregistered pay-as-you-go mobile telephones. [290454]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The Home Office has not made an assessment of the effects on levels of criminal activity on the availability of unregistered pay-as-you-go mobile telephones.
The National Mobile Phone Crime Unit, which the Home Office part sponsors, recently did a survey of handsets stolen in the Metropolitan police area and discovered that around 35 per cent. were pre-pay.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate has been made of the percentage of violent crime that involved the use of cars by uninsured drivers and drivers who had previous driving convictions and bans in the latest period for which figures are available. [289962]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate has been made of the number of cases of violent crime which involved uninsured drivers in the latest period for which figures are available. [289964]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Data are available for 2008-09 for offences of ‘Causing death by driving: Unlicensed, Disqualified or Uninsured drivers’ and there were six offences recorded by the police in England and Wales. However, it is not possible to separately identify which deaths, if any, were caused by uninsured drivers.
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of offenders identified by the British Crime survey as perpetrators of (a) stranger violence, (b) acquaintance violence and (c) mugging were female in each year for which figures are available. [291775]
Alan Johnson: The following tables show the percentage of offenders identified by victims of violent incidents as female, male or both (in the case of more than one offender) from the British crime survey between 1995 and 2008-09.
Trends in offender characteristics in violent incidents, BCS typology
| Table 1: Sex of offenders in incide nts of mugging, 1996 to 2008-09, BCS | |||||||||||
| Percentage | |||||||||||
| Mugging | |||||||||||
| Sex of offenders | 1995 | 1997 | 1999 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
| Table 2 : Sex of offenders in incidents of stranger violence, 1996 to 2008-09, BCS | |||||||||||
| Percentage | |||||||||||
| Stranger | |||||||||||
| Sex of offenders | 1995 | 1997 | 1999 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
| Table 3: Sex of offenders in incidents of acquaintance violence , 1996 to 2008-09, BCS | |||||||||||
| Percentage | |||||||||||
| Acquaintance | |||||||||||
| Sex of offenders | 1995 | 1997 | 1999 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
| Notes: 1. Detailed questions about offender(s) are only asked of victims who experienced three or less offences in the last year to minimise respondent burden. Figures here are based on incidents in which the victim could say something about the offender(s). 2. Totals do not always sum to 100 as more than one offender could be involved. 3. Unweighted base is the number of victims who were able to say something about offender. | |||||||||||
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) crimes of violence against the person and (b) crimes were recorded in Birmingham, Sparkbrook & Small Heath constituency in the last three years for which figures are available. [291444]
Mr. Alan Campbell: Crime figures are not collected by constituency. The available police recorded crime statistics for the Birmingham crime and disorder reduction partnership are given in the following table.
| Offences recorded in the Birmingham crime and disorder reduction partnership, 2006-07 to 2008-09 | |||
| Offence | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
| (1) Includes violence against the person, sexual offences, robbery, burglary, offences against vehicles, other theft offences, fraud and forgery, criminal damage, drug offences and other offences. | |||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 518W—continued
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 14 May 2009, Official Report, column 926W, on criminal investigation costs, what the (a) direct staff costs, (b) operational support costs, (c) business support costs and (d) total costs excluding overheads for (i) violence against the person—S20 and more serious, (ii) violence against the person S47 and less serious, (iii) sexual offences, (iv) robbery, (v) deception/fraud, (vi) drugs offences, (vii) criminal damage, (viii) crimes other than those specified above and (ix) crimes other than those specified in ABC data collection were in (A) 2004-05, (B) 2005-06 and (C) 2006-07. [290890]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The data requested are given in the tables.
| Table 1: Average cost per incident, by incident type, 2004-05: (£) | ||||
| (£) | ||||
| Direct staff costs | Operational support costs | Business support costs | Total cost excluding overheads | |
| Table 2: Average costs per incident, 2005-06 | ||||
| (£) | ||||
| Direct staff costs | Operational support costs | Business support costs | Total cost excluding overheads | |
| Table 3: Average costs per incident, 2006-07 | ||||
| (£) | ||||
| Direct staff costs | Operational support costs | Business support costs | Total cost excluding overheads | |
| (1) Crimes specified in ABC data collection are: violence against the person, sexual offences, burglary (dwelling), burglary (commercial and other), robbery, theft of or from a motor vehicle, theft of or from a motor vehicle, deception/fraud, theft (other), drugs offences, criminal damage. | ||||
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much his Department spent on newspaper advertising carried in each newspaper in the most recent year for which figures are available. [289510]
Mr. Woolas: The Home Office and its external agencies spent £1,795,842 on newspaper advertising in the 2008-09 financial year to communicate policies on knife crime, community safety, acquisitive crime, alcohol and the point based system in immigration.
Justine Greening:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff have (a) been dismissed and (b) had their contract terminated by his Department in each of the last five years; what the
reason was in each case; and what the severance costs in relation to (i) dismissal and (ii) contract termination were in each such year. [290572]
Mr. Woolas: The information is as follows.
(a) Table 1 shows the number of staff who have been dismissed.
| Table 1 | |
| Financial year | Dismissals total |
(b) We are unable to identify those who have had their contract terminated as this is not a utilised reason for leaving; to identify the reason for each case could be obtained only at disproportionate cost as the data are not held centrally and would require each regional office to provide data.
The severance costs in relation to (i) dismissal and (ii) contract termination for each financial year is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate costs as it would require each regional office to provide data.
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) Ministers and (b) special advisers in his Department are provided with a Blackberry device. [289585]
Alan Johnson: In my Department six Ministers and two special advisers are issued with BlackBerry devices.
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many officials in (a) the Office for Security and Counter-terrorism, (b) the Identity and Passport Service and (c) his Department have been issued with a Blackberry device. [289586]
Alan Johnson: There are currently 457 secure Blackberry devices issued to civil servants in the Home Office. Of these, 31 secure devices have been issued to staff in the Office for Security and Counter Terrorism. The Identity and Passport Service does not supply Blackberry devices to its staff.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much funding from each of his Department's projects will be diverted to the Department for Communities and Local Government to implement the housing policies announced in the Draft Legislative Programme 2009-10. [289539]
Mr. Woolas: The Home Office has been able to identify emerging underspends from which to contribute to the housing programme, and as a result it has not been necessary to divert funding from any programmes or projects.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what expenditure his Department has incurred on room hire at the City Inn in Westminster in the last 24 months; and on how many occasions such rooms have been hired by his Department in that period. [290807]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The Department has made payments totalling £5,651 to City Inn, Westminster, during the last two years. These relate to the hiring of conference facilities by business areas on four occasions.
Of the Department's agencies, Criminal Records Bureau has not made any payments and Identity and Passport Service cannot provide the information without incurring disproportionate cost.
All Home Office expenditure conforms to the principles of regularity, propriety and value for money, and any other guidance as applicable contained within “Managing Public Money” and the Treasury handbook on “Regularity and Propriety.”
12 Oct 2009 : Column 522W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what flexi-time arrangements have been available to staff of his Department in each of the last five years; and how many staff participated in such arrangements in each such year. [290574]
Mr. Woolas: Most parts of the Home Office allow staff to participate in flexitime arrangements where operationally possible. However, there are significant areas of the Home Office, such as the UK Border Agency front line operations, where business needs preclude the working of flexitime.
Over a four-week accounting period, staff on flexitime are required to complete their net conditioned hours of attendance, with a limited credit or deficit being carried over from one period to the next if necessary.
The Home Office flexitime policy requires staff to be present during an agreed “core time” of 10am to 3.45 pm. Subject to business needs, it allows them to start work any time between 7.30 am and 10am and allows them to leave work any time between 3.45 and 7pm. A lunch break of at least 30 minutes must be taken between 11am and 3pm.
These arrangements may be varied slightly with the agreement of local management. Staff with a part-time attendance pattern must agree individual arrangements with their line managers.
There are more than 250 Home Office locations across the United Kingdom. Flexitime monitoring is undertaken at a local level and is either electronic or paper-based; records are not maintained centrally and no historic records are available. Therefore, an attempt to obtain the information requested could not be effected without incurring disproportionate cost.
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the answer of 14 November 2008, Official Report, column 2234W, on departmental marketing, how many staff in his Department are responsible for branding activity; and what the cost of employing such staff was in 2008-09. [290212]
Mr. Woolas: The number of staff responsible for branding and the total cost of employment for the financial year 2008-09 are detailed in the following table:
| Number of staff employed | Total cost (£) | |
4 hours per week at SIO grade within the Home Office
one day per week at EO grade for UKBA
one day per week at SEO grade for IPS.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much his Department spent on hire vehicles in each of the last five financial years. [291614]
Mr. Woolas: Information on spend is available from 2005-06 following the introduction of the Department's Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. Collation of information prior to this date is available only at disproportionate cost. The Department's (inclusive of its executive agencies) spend on car hire outside the Government Car Service since 2005-06 is as follows:
| Car hire expenditure | |
| Financial year | £ |
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many properties owned by the Department were liable for payment of (a) business rates and (b) empty property rates in each of the last five years; and what the liability in respect of each was in each such year. [290575]
Mr. Woolas: The information is as follows.
(a) In 2004-05 the Department owned five buildings liable for business rates. Since the disposal of a surplus property in 2005-06, this has reduced to four. Details of the costs for each respective year are in the following table:
| Total (£000) | |
(b) The Department has not owned any properties qualifying for empty rates relief in the period covered by this question.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his Department’s hospitality and catering budget was in each of the last five years; and what proportion of that budget was spent on entertainment in each such year. [290127]
Mr. Woolas: The Department’s budget holders are responsible for translating delegations into sufficiently detailed budgets to enable delivery of objectives. Although the Department’s accounting system can report hospitality and catering budget data, budget holders have broken down their resource delegations differently, and not always to this level of detail.
Entertainment is not accounted for separately.
The requested information cannot therefore be provided without incurring disproportionate cost. All Home Office expenditure on entertainment and hospitality conforms to the principles of regularity, propriety and value for money, and any other guidance as applicable contained within Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff took paternity leave from his Department in each of the last five years; and what the average duration of such leave has been. [290573]
Mr. Woolas: Employees are contractually entitled to 10 days paid paternity or maternity support leave if they have completed one year’s qualifying service ending with the 15th week before the baby is due.
The actual number of employees who have taken paternity leave in the Home Office has not been collated centrally and we are therefore unable to provide paternity leave data for each of the last five years without incurring disproportionate costs.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what employee reward schemes are offered to staff of his Department; what the purpose of each scheme is; how many staff participate in each scheme; and what the cost of operating each scheme was in each of the last five years. [290576]
Mr. Woolas: In Home Office HQ and the United Kingdom Border Agency there are two reward schemes: a one-off non-consolidated special payment scheme and a “thank you” voucher scheme. The purpose of the one-off non-consolidated special payment scheme is to reward outstanding achievement by staff in particularly demanding tasks or situations. In the financial year 2007-08 3,702 staff received a payment under this scheme at a total cost of £2,564,759; in 2008-09 2,863 staff received a payment under this scheme at a total cost of £1,161,720.
Accurate data prior to the financial year 2007-08 is unavailable and could not be obtained without incurring disproportionate cost.
The “thank you” voucher scheme launched in September 2008. Its purpose is to reward outstanding achievement. Staff can be awarded vouchers to the value of either £25 or £50 to spend in high street stores. Since its launch, 1,635 staff have received vouchers under this scheme at a total cost of £71,728.
The Identity and Passport Service (IPS) operates three employee reward schemes: the Corporate one-off non-consolidated payment scheme; the Grade 6/7 one-off non-consolidated payment scheme, and the one-off non-consolidated Special payment scheme. In all cases, data is available only for the past two financial years. Data for previous years could not be obtained without incurring disproportionate cost.
The IPS Corporate one-off non-consolidated payment scheme is available to all staff in grades below the senior civil service. The payment, which is limited to a maximum of £450 per person, is designed to reward successful delivery of key organisational aims. In 2007-08 3,930 staff received a payment under this scheme at a total cost of £1,309,828; in 2008-09 4,401 staff received a payment under this scheme at a total cost of £1,665,760.
The purpose of the IPS Grade 6/7 one-off non-consolidated payment scheme is to reward excellent achievement in management and leadership. In 2007-08 122 staff received a payment under this scheme at a total cost of £140, 673; in 2008-09 130 staff received a payment under this scheme at a total cost of £328,500.
The IPS one-off non-consolidated Special payment scheme is open to al staff in grades below the senior civil service. Its purpose is to reward individuals or teams for exceptional performance in particularly demanding tasks or situations. In 2007-08 862 staff received a payment under this scheme at a total cost of £94,523; in 2008-09 640 staff received a payment under this scheme at a total cost of £65,410.
The Criminal Records Bureau operates a one-off non-consolidated special payment scheme to reward exceptional individual performance. In 2007-08 13 staff received a payment under this scheme at a total cost of £21,360; in 2008-09 36 staff received a payment under this scheme at a total cost of £9,275.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of his Department’s officials received bonuses in each year since 1997; and how much was paid in total in bonuses in each of those years. [291628]
Mr. Woolas: The Home Office (including the UK Border Agency), as part of its annual pay arrangements, pays non consolidated performance related bonuses up to 35 per cent. of its staff. There are rewards for exceptional contribution throughout the year. There are separate arrangements for the Department’s senior staff, which are set by the Prime Minister for the whole senior civil service, following independent advice from the Senior Salaries Review Body.
In the years for which data are available the following bonuses were paid (with the total costs in brackets):
| Number | Total costs (£ million) | |
It is also possible to give one-off special payments to members of staff in year to reward exceptional achievements on a project or programme. 2,863 staff received such a payment in 2008-09 at a cost of £1.16 million; the equivalent figures for 2007-08 were 3,702 (£2.56 million).
We cannot provide information for previous years except at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the budget of (a) his Department's property group and (b) the probation division of that group is for 2009-10; and how many people are employed in each. [290336]
Mr. Woolas: General property in the Department’s shared services directorate has a planned gross pay/non-pay outturn cost for 2009-10 of £6.4 million allowing for vacancies to be filled. It currently comprises 136 staff that are organised as service delivery teams, rather than client-specific teams. The financial contribution to the Home Office pay/non-pay budget by the National Offender Management Service for services provided which includes those to the National Probation Service estate is £1.5 million.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289738]
Mr. Woolas: I am the Minister responsible for Value for Money in my Department. The Home Office has a strong and ambitious Value for Money programme that will deliver cashable improvements worth £1,584 million per annum by 2010-11.
Performance against this ambition was reported in the 2008 Home Office Annual Report [Cm 7592]. That included activity to improve public service delivery, for example, Operation QUEST in the police service has delivered significant benefits to the public in terms of customer satisfaction and value for money by giving police officers and staff the skills to understand and then implement improved operational processes.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of his Department’s waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289671]
Mr. Woolas: The information requested for the core Home Office and UK Borders Agency combined is as follows:
| Total waste (tonnes) | Percentage recycled | |
The Home Office is working towards meeting the Sustainable Operations on the Government Estate targets on waste generation and recycling.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost to his Department of sickness absences was in each of the last five years. [290569]
Mr. Woolas: Full information is not held centrally and to extract and model the required data for five years would incur disproportionate cost.
The total cost of sickness absence in the Home Office for the financial year 2008-09 was £23.47 million.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 527W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much his Department spent on flights for travel by Ministers in each year from 2005 to 2008. [291488]
Mr. Woolas: Since 1999, the Government have published a list of all overseas travel by Cabinet Ministers costing over £500. Since 2008, this list has included information on all overseas visits undertaken by all Ministers. Information for the last financial year was published on 16 July 2009. Details for the current financial year will be published as soon as possible after the end of the financial year. All ministerial travel is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code.
Mr. Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department against how many people he and his predecessors have undertaken deportation proceedings on the grounds of national security in each year since 2001; and how many people have been deported on the grounds of national security in each such year. [290717]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: Comprehensive details of the number of cases where a notice of intention to deport on grounds of national security was served are not available for the period 2001-04.
During the period 2005 to end August 2009, the number of cases where a notice of intention to deport on those grounds was served is as follows:
| People (Number) | |
Nine people have been deported on grounds of national security since 2005; three in 2006 and six in 2007.
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been (a) deported and (b) excluded from the UK on the grounds of fomenting extremism or demonstrating unacceptable behaviour under the 12 point plan announced by the then Prime Minister in August 2005, in each quarter since August 2005. [291301]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: In each quarter since August 2005, the following number of foreign nationals have been (a) deported and (b) excluded from the UK on the grounds of fomenting extremism or demonstrating other aspects of unacceptable behaviour:
| Number | ||
| (1) This figure is from August 2005 and included within previous PQ answer given on 29 September 2009, Official Report, column 2359W. The figure given was four. This figure has now been reduced to three due to the re-classification of one exclusion, from unacceptable behaviour to public order. (2) This figure has been amended to reflect four cases instead of three mentioned in the previous PQ answer given on 29 September 2008, Official Report, columns 2358-59W. The increase in this breakdown reflects an additional unacceptable behaviour exclusion decision that was made in August 2006. (3) To date. | ||
These figures do not constitute part of National Statistics as they are based on internal management information. The information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols, should be treated as provisional and is subject to change.
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been (a) deported and (b) excluded from the UK on national security grounds in each quarter since August 2005. [291304]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: In each quarter since August 2005 the following number of foreign nationals have been (a) deported and (b) excluded from the UK on national security grounds:
| Number | ||
| (1) To date | ||
These figures do not constitute part of National Statistics as they are based on internal management information. The information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols, should be treated as provisional and is subject to change.
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) enforced removals and (b) voluntary departures there have been in (i) each year since 1997 and (ii) each quarter since the first quarter of 2008; and how many of the enforced removals were not initial refusals at a port of entry in each such year. [291840]
Mr. Woolas: Official statistics on enforced removals are not available separately. The following tables show the number of combined removals and voluntary departures in each year since 1997 and each quarter since Q1 2008.
The Home Office publishes statistics on the number of persons removed or departed voluntarily from the UK on a quarterly and annual basis, which are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office’s Research, Development and Statistics website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
| Removals and voluntary departures( 1,2) from the United Kingdom, 1997 to Q2 2009 | ||||||||||||
| Number of departures | ||||||||||||
| 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008( 3) | |
|
Non-asylum cases refused entry at port and subsequently removed(4,5) | ||||||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 530W—continued
| Number of departures | ||||||
| 2008 Q1( 3) | 2008 Q2( 3) | 2008 Q3( 3) | 2008 Q4( 3) | 2009 Q1( 3) | 2009 Q2( 3) | |
|
Non-asylum cases refused entry at port and subsequently removed(4,5) | ||||||
| (1) Removals and voluntary departures recorded on the system as at the dates on which the data extracts were taken. Figures will under record due to data cleansing and data matching exercises that take place after the extracts are taken. Prior to 2005, data are not directly comparable. (2) Figures rounded to the nearest 5, (- = 0, * = 1 or 2) and may not sum to the totals shown because of independent rounding. (3) Provisional figures. (4) Figures include persons departing voluntarily after enforcement action had been initiated against them, cases dealt with at juxtaposed controls, since 2004 removals performed by Immigration Officers at ports using enforcement powers and since 2005 a small number of cases who it has been established left the UK without informing the immigration authorities. (5) Figures up to March 2001 may include a small number of dependants of principal asylum applicants refused entry at port and subsequently removed. (6) Not available. (7) Due to a reclassification of removal categories, figures include asylum removals performed by Enforcement Officers using port powers of removal and a small number of cases dealt with at juxtaposed controls. (8) Since January 2006 figures include persons leaving under Facilitated Return Schemes. (9) Assisted Voluntary Return Programmes run by the International Organisation for Migration. May include some cases where enforcement action has been initiated. (10) Since January 2005, persons who it has been established left the UK without informing the immigration authorities. (11) Not applicable. | ||||||
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Eritrean nationals have been forcibly returned from the UK to Eritrea since September 2008; what reports he has received of their treatment by the Eritrean authorities upon their return; and if he will make a statement. [291138]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 14 September 2009]: UK Border Agency figures show there were three departures, all voluntary, from the UK to Eritrea between September 2008 and June 2009. Published figures on returns can be found at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
Information about the treatment of failed asylum seekers returned to Eritrea is contained in the Country of Origin Information Service Report for Eritrea, the latest version of which can be found at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/country_reports.html
David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to issue revised guidance to UK Border Agency caseworkers on the application of Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights in the light of the House of Lords judgment in the case of Huang and Kashmiri (2007) UKHL 11. [291124]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 14 September 2009]: We are finalising the changes to the guidance to caseworkers on the application of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, and expect that it will be issued by the end of September.
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the 4,096 offenders who had their licence recalled in 2008-09 and were classified as returned to custody have been deported. [291202]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 14 September 2009]: In the written ministerial statement of 6 July 2009, Audit of Licence Revocation, the Secretary of State for Justice announced that as at 26 June 2009, 954 offenders who had their licences revoked between 1984 and 31 March 2009 were not recorded as having been returned to custody. Of these, the chief executive of the UK Border Agency reported to the Home Affairs Select Committee on 8 July 2009 that 192 were foreign nationals, of which 64 were being pursed as meeting the criteria for deportation.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions Ministers in his Department have signed authorisations for the continued detention of children at immigration removal centres beyond 28 days in each of the last five years. [290788]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: Local management information indicates that the following referrals for ministerial authorisation of the continued detention of a child under Immigration Act powers have been made in each of the last five statistical years. Figures for the current statistical year up to and including four September 2009 are also included. The information is shown in the following table.
| Statistical year (year begins on the first of April) | Number of families referred to the Minister for authorisation of detention of children beyond 28 days | Number of children referred to the Minister for authorisation of detention beyond 28 days |
| Notes 1. The figures provided do not constitute part of National Statistics as they are based on local management information. This information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols and should be treated as provisional and subject to change. 2. Local management information does not identify the detention location of the child which may include immigration detention in a facility other than an immigration removal centre. | ||
National Statistics on children detained solely under Immigration Act powers on a snapshot basis are published quarterly. The information is published in Tables 9-11 of the Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summary, United Kingdom bulletins which are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office's Research, Development and Statistics website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which immigration removal centres operated by the UK Border Agency are equipped to accommodate children. [290789]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: There are three immigration removal centres in the UK that can accommodate families with children; Dungavel House, Tinsley House and Yarl's Wood. The first two centres routinely accommodate family groups for approximately 72 hours. Where detention is likely to extend beyond this timeframe, families are transferred to Yarl's Wood, which has the facilities to support longer periods of detention.
Full details about each centre and the facilities they provide are available on the UK Border Agency website:
www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/managingborders/immigrationremovalcentres
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what (a) educational and (b) medical provision is made for children detained at immigration removal centres operated by the UK Border Agency. [290790]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: Provision of education and crèche facilities for children is focused at Yarl’s Wood immigration removal centre. The centre provides an Ofsted inspected crèche and school classrooms delivering 30 hours per week of tuition by qualified teachers for children aged five to 16 years. The teachers follow schemes of work that reflect the national curriculum key learning stages and include five hours of physical education. Children under school age have access to the crèche which is staffed seven days a week from 9 am to 5 pm by appropriately qualified child care professionals.
All immigration removal centres provide free onsite primary health care to the same level of care as NHS general practices in the community. The health care centre at Yarl’s Wood is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by qualified medical staff who provide holistic care to meet the needs of individuals in accordance with the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines. Referrals to the local hospital for secondary care are made as medically required. In addition to this, the centre has dedicated services that are provided to specifically meet the needs of families and children. These include a paediatric nurse, health and midwife visitors, weight and immunisation clinics which are able to prescribe malarial prophylaxis for identified risk groups, access to children’s acute mental health services (CAMH) and counselling services.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he has taken to provide alternative accommodation for children detained at immigration removal centres operated by the UK Border Agency. [290791]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: Families with children are detained to effect their departure from this country when they have no legal right to remain here and refuse to leave voluntarily, even when offered assistance to do so. They are detained only as a last resort and for as short a time as possible.
We are committed to exploring alternative ways of ensuring that such families leave the country so as to reduce the number of children who need to be detained. Building on the experience of a project in Ashford, Kent in 2007, a new pilot is currently running in Glasgow which is a partnership between the UK Border Agency, Glasgow city council and the Scottish Government. The pilot can accommodate up to five families in designated flats, where they receive targeted help from social workers to prepare positive plans for a voluntary return to their home country.
The pilot is scheduled to run for three years and will be subject to independent evaluation.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children detained at immigration removal centres operated by the UK Border Agency have required medical attention (a) during and (b) after their period of detention in the last five years. [290792]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The information requested is not yet collated centrally and could be provided only by checking each individual's medical file. Not only would this be at disproportionate cost, but the information would not be readily provided to the UK Border Agency as it is medically in confidence.
However, all detainees, including children, are seen within two hours of arrival in the centre by a nurse and an appointment made for them to see the GP within 24 hours unless a health-led assessment requires earlier attention. These and any subsequent consultations are recorded on the child's individual medical record.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many recorded cases there have been of verbal or physical abuse of converts from (a) Hinduism, (b) Christianity, (c) Judaism, (d) Islam, (e) Sikhism, (f) Buddhism and (g) other religions detained in (i) immigration removal centres and (ii) short-term holding centres since 2000. [290295]
Mr. Woolas: The UK Border Agency does not collate the information requested and could provide it by checking each individual detainee record only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what mechanisms he has to record the frequency with which detainees at the immigration removal centres at (a) Brook House, (b) Campsfield House, (c) Colnbrook IRC, (d) Dover, (e) Dungavel House, (f) Haslar, (g) Kalyx, (h) Lindholme, (i) Oakington, (j) Tinsley House and (k) Yarl's Wood have requested visits by a religious representative of their choice; how often such requests have been fulfilled in each of the last three years; and how long on average it took to fulfil such a request in each such year. [290312]
Mr. Woolas: Each Immigration Removal Centre has a Manager for Religious Affairs, who takes responsibility for facilitating detainee requests to see a religious representative of his or her choice. In addition, most centres have an on-site Chaplain who, alongside a diverse group of regular visiting ministers, delivers a wide-ranging religious affairs programme. As such, requests to see other specific religious representatives do not arise often. There have been 34 recorded requests in the last three years. The data are normally used for management information only and are not subject to the detailed checks that apply for national statistics publications.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 535W—continued
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) males and (b) females aged (i) under 18 years and (ii) 18 years old or over were returned to after absconding from each immigration detention centre in each year since 1997. [291596]
Alan Johnson: Information on the number of detainees who have escaped from each immigration removal centre and have been re-captured is taken from local management information. This data are normally used for management information only and are not subject to the detailed checks that apply for National Statistics publications. Data on the number of individuals re-captured are available from 2006. The information is provisional and subject to change.
There have been no escapes by females or by detained individuals under the age of 18 years.
In 2006 there were 20 escapes, 19 from Oakington and one from Dungavel. Four individuals have been re-captured.
In 2007 there were 90 escapes, 63 from Oakington, 26 from Campsfield and one from Yarl's Wood. 19 have been re-captured.
In 2008 there were 35 escapes, 25 from Oakington, seven from Campsfield, two from Haslar and one from Lindholme. Nine have been re-captured.
The UK Border Agency takes all escapes very seriously. Procedures are in place to seek to recover individuals who escape from detention. The police are informed immediately and the individuals' details are recorded on the police national computer (PNC) as an absconder should the individual be apprehended at a later date.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) males and (b) females aged (i) under 18 years and (ii) 18 years old or over absconded from immigration detention centres in each year since 1997. [291597]
Alan Johnson: Information on the number of detainees who have escaped from each immigration removal centre is taken from local management information. This data are normally used for management information only and are not subject to the detailed checks that apply for National Statistics publications. Data is available from 2004.
There have been no escapes by females or by detained individuals under the age of 18 years.
In 2004, there were 12 escapes;
In 2005, there were five escapes;
In 2006, there were 20 escapes;
In 2007, there were 90 escapes;
In 2008, there were 35 escapes.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he has taken to provide information on the exceptional case removal procedure for the National DNA Database in each year since the procedure became operational; how much he has spent on such steps; and if he will make a statement. [290828]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 9 September 2009]: In January 2006, the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) issued guidelines for Chief Officers on the retention of police national computer, DNA and fingerprint records in England and Wales. The guidelines included an “Exceptional Case Procedure” covering consideration of requests for the removal of DNA profiles from the National DNA Database (NDNAD). The guidelines were published on the Home Office and ACPO websites in 2006, where they remain.
Information on the Exceptional Case Procedure was also published in the NDNAD annual report 2006-07 on pages 23-24. This report was published on the website of the National Policing Improvement Agency in 2008 and remains there.
Information will also be included in the NDNAD annual report for 2007-09, which will be published shortly.
In addition, information on the Exceptional Case Procedure was published in the Official Report in answer to parliamentary questions on three occasions in 2006, three in 2008 and three in 2009:
9 October 2006, Official Report, column 494W
11 October 2006, Official Report, column 788W
12 October 2006, Official Report, column 866W
4 February 2008, Official Report, column 805W
2 July 2008, Official Report, columns 908-09W
6 November 2008, Official Report, column 637W
13 January 2009, Official Report, column 709W
3 February 2009, Official Report, column 1048W
6 May 2009, Official Report, column 278W
In addition, information was published on three occasions in another place in the period January-February 2008.
It is not possible to disaggregate the cost of publishing this information from other costs incurred in running the NDNAD and publishing the NDNAD annual reports.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the percentage change in the number of domestic violence incidents in each police force area in each of the last five years was. [291747]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The available data are given in the following table.
| Number of domestic violence incidents by police force area and annual percentage changes | ||||||
| Incidents | ||||||
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 538W—continued
| Percentage changes | |||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
| Notes: 1. All data are provisional and unverified 2. Data are estimated. Where data are estimated, corresponding percentage changes are based on those estimates | |||||
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of those brought into a police station tested positively for class A drugs in 2008-09; and how many offenders entered treatment voluntarily through the Drug Intervention Programme in that year. [290975]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 14 September 2009]: Under the Drug Interventions Programme (DIP), drug testing of offenders for specified class A drugs (heroin and cocaine/crack) in police custody takes place in 107 BCUs. Offenders arrested or charged with a “trigger offence”—largely acquisitive crime related offences—are required to provide a sample to be tested. In 2008-09, 34 per cent. of those drug tested while in police custody tested positively for class A drugs.
All treatment takes place with consent and therefore is entered voluntarily.
DIP identifies drug misusers through a positive drug test, as well as through referral in the community and prison. The number of adults commencing treatment through DIP in 2008-09 was 57,951.
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make an estimate of the number of people who have been (a) arrested and (b) charged in respect of offences committed while they were taking selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors in each of the last five years. [291487]
Mr. Alan Campbell:
The information requested is not available as it is not possible to separately identify
people who have been arrested and charged in respect of offences committed while they were taking selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 541W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times his Department has been taken to an employment tribunal in each of the last five years; what the reason cited in each case was; and in how many cases the tribunal found in favour of the (a) employee and (b) Department. [290571]
Mr. Woolas: The number of times the Home Office, including the UK Border Agency (UKBA), Identity and Passport Service (IPS) and Criminal Records Bureau (CRB), have been taken to a full employment tribunal hearing in each of the last five years is as follows:
Neither Home Office HQ nor UKBA hold this information centrally, which could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost. Neither IPS nor CRB were taken to a full employment tribunal.
Fewer than five claims went to a full hearing. Further information is therefore withheld on confidentiality grounds.
There were 10 full employment tribunal hearings; the tribunal found in favour of the employee on two occasions and in favour of the Department on 8 occasions. The reasons given for the claims included disability discrimination, race discrimination, unfair dismissal, and equal pay.
There were seven full employment tribunal hearings; the tribunal found in favour of the employee on one occasion and in favour of the Department on six occasions. The reasons given for the claims included race discrimination, unfair dismissal, and unlawful deduction of wages.
There were 11 full employment tribunals; the tribunal found in favour of the employee on four occasions and in favour of the Department on seven occasions. The reasons given for the claims included disability discrimination, race discrimination, sex discrimination, unfair dismissal, unlawful deduction of wages and victimisation.
Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he plans to publish the research commissioned by his Department on the likely effects of raising the minimum age for (a) a sponsor and (b) leave to enter the UK as a spouse or fiancé. [290402]
Mr. Woolas: There is no current intention to formally publish the research commissioned by the Department on the likely effects of raising the minimum age for (a) a sponsor and (b) leave to enter the UK as a spouse or fiancé.
The view of the UK Border Agency researchers and two external peer-reviewers was that the research report was not of sufficient quality to be published in the Home Office Research Series. The methodology used
for the research was sound, but the subsequent report contained unsubstantiated conclusions and misleading statements.
The contractor was informed that the full research report was not of suitable quality for publication in the Home Office Research Series but that the Home Office would be content for them to seek publication elsewhere. Research findings have since been published by the contractor on the University of Bristol website and by the Runnymede Trust.
A summary of the research, subsequently produced by the UK Border Agency researchers in conjunction with the contractors drew out the key findings. This was provided to the Home Affairs Select Committee to inform the consultation on domestic violence, forced marriage and ‘honour’ based violence. The Department will also be releasing this report under a Freedom of Information Act request. However, it will not be formally publishing in the Home Office Research Series due to the concerns outlined above.
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps his Department is taking to reduce the waiting time for the consideration of EEA2 applications. [290690]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: UKBA has put in place a clear, focused recovery plan which will enable the agency to return to operating with service standards by December 2009.The plan is monitored on a daily basis by senior operational managers.
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many student visa applications were submitted in the first six months of 2009. [291201]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 14 September 2009]: I refer the hon. Member to the Entry Clearance Statistics for FY 2008-09, published in August on the UK Border Agency's Visa Service's website, for details of student visa applications submitted in the first quarter of 2009. Entry clearance statistics for the second quarter of 2009 are due to be published in November.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department who in his Department was (a) consulted about and (b) informed of the appointment of the Chief Constable of Essex Police; and if he will make a statement. [291043]
Mr. Hanson [holding answer 14 September 2009]: Under Section 11 of the Police Act 1996 Ministers approve candidates for chief constable posts. This takes place before short-listing by the police authority and on the advice of the Police Senior Appointments Panel.
Sir Ronnie Flanagan is interim independent chair of the panel and it includes a representative from the Home Office, as well as representation from the Association of Police Authorities, the Association of Chief Police Officers, Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary and an independent member.
Following ministerial approval, it is the responsibility of the police authority to interview candidates and make the final appointment. The police authority will then notify the Senior Appointments Panel's secretariat of its decision. The secretariat will then inform members of the panel, including the Home Office representative.
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many records were held on National Fingerprint Database on 1 August 2009. [291200]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 14 October 2009]: As at 1 August 2009 there were 8,045,329 subjects held on the National Fingerprint Database.
Mr. Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many fixed penalty notices were issued in each of the last 24 months by each police force in England and Wales. [290978]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 14 September 2009]: Information on the number of fixed penalty notices for motoring offences is provided in table A.
Additionally, data provided by the Ministry of Justice on Penalty Notices for Disorder (PNDs) issued to persons aged 16 and over in England and Wales, by police force area and month, for 2006 and 2007 (latest available) are given in tables B and C.
Information on fixed penalty notices for motoring offences held by the Home Office is not broken down by months and therefore we are unable to provide you with data in this way.
| Table A: Fixed penalty notices issued for all offences by offence group and police force area for England and Wales, 2006 and 2007 | ||
| Police force area | 2006 | 2007 |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 544W—continued
| Table B: Number of penalty notices for disorder issued to persons aged 16 and over, by police force area and month, England and Wales 2006(1) | |||||||||||||
| Police force area | Total | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| (1) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (2) Not applicable. The British Transport Police started issuing PNDs on 1 March 2006. | |||||||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 546W—continued
| Table C: Number of penalty notices for disorder issued to persons aged 16 and over, by police force area and month, England and Wales 2007( 1) | |||||||||||||
| Police force area | Total | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| (1) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. | |||||||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 548W—continued
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) prosecutions have been made and (b) fixed penalty notices have been issued by (i) police and (ii) local authorities for (A) fly tipping, (B) graffiti, (C) dog fouling, (D) the dropping of litter and (E) parking offences in (1) 2007-08 and (2) 2008-09. [290714]
Mr. Alan Campbell
[holding answer 9 September 2009]: Information provided by the Ministry of Justice, showing the number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for fly tipping, other criminal damage, dog fouling, dropping of litter and parking offences in England and Wales in 2007 are given in the table. Please note that data reported to the Ministry of Justice do not separately identify graffiti offences from other criminal damage offences. Court proceedings data are published by calendar year; 2007 is the latest available, data for 2008 will be
available towards the end of 2009. The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offence for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.
Offences of fly tipping, dog fouling, the dropping of litter and parking offences are summary offences and do not feature in the police recorded crime statistics collected by the Home Office. The Home Office does collect penalty notice for disorder (PND) data on recorded offences of criminal damage, which includes graffiti-related offences, although these are part of an aggregate count and therefore cannot be separately identified.
Information on fixed penalties for motoring offences (FPNs) reported to the Home Office shows that there were 446,816 FPNs issued for ‘obstruction, waiting and parking offences’ in 2007. Data for 2008 are scheduled to be published in March 2010.
Additionally, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) publishes data on fixed penalty notices for environmental offences. The most recent published information can be found on the DEFRA website which can be viewed via the following web link:
http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/localenv/legislation/fpn/index.htm
| Number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for selected offences, England and Wales, 2007( 1,2) | |
| Offence | 2007 |
| (1) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) Covers offences under sections 33(6),33(8),33(9),34 and 59 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. (4) Offences of graffiti cannot be separately identified within the “other criminal damage” category. (5) Covers offences under section 3 of the 1996 Dogs (Fouling of Land) Act. (6) Covers offences under sections 87 and 94 of the 1990 Environmental Protection Act, section 1 of the 1989 Control of Pollution (Amendment) Act and section 2 of the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978. (7) Covers offences under sections 19,21, 22 and 160 of the 1988 Road Traffic Act, sections 173,174,175 and 190 of the 2000 Transport Act, ss 78,79 and 82 of 2004 Traffic Management Act, ss 72 and 78 of the 1835 Highway Act, s54 of the 1839 Metropolitan Police Act, ss5(1),8,32-36 and 45-53 of the 1984 Road Traffic Regulation Act, and RR101 and 103 of the 1986 Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations. Source: Evidence and Analysis Unit—Office for Criminal Justice Reform | |
Mr. Clappison:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) migrants and (b) dependants of migrants of each nationality have been given leave to enter the UK under the (i) skilled worker route, (ii) highly skilled migrants programme, (iii) tier 2
of the points-based system and (iv) tier 1 of the points-based system in each quarter since 1 January 2007. [290713]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The information requested about migrants and their dependents who have been given leave to enter in each quarter since January 2007 under (1) Tiers 1 and 2 of the Points Based System and (2) the entry routes which Tiers 1 and 2 replaced will be placed in the House Library.
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications by Lloyds Banking Group for permits for skilled workers from each country of origin under the intra-company transfer category were (a) made to and (b) generated by the UK Border Agency in each month since April 2009. [291345]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The information requested is commercially sensitive and, as such, will not be released.
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign national prisoners were held under immigration detention powers were held (a) in prison and (b) on the immigration removal estate on 1 August 2009. [290907]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: As at 1 August 2009 there were approximately 1,800 foreign national offenders detained under immigration powers who had completed their sentence and were awaiting deportation. Around 500 of those were detained under immigration powers in Her Majesty's prisons.
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what funding he has allocated for training of social workers and police in matters related to human trafficking for each of the next three years. [289350]
Mr. Alan Campbell: There have been no funding decisions taken in respect of training on issues of human trafficking for the next three years. Training modules on human trafficking are being rolled out to become part of mainstream mandatory training for police officers. This work is on course to be completed by the end of 2009.
Training of social workers falls appropriately to local authorities, which shape the services provided to meet the needs of the local population including keeping children safe from harm.
Mr. Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent estimate is of the number of women and children trafficked into the UK for (a) sexual exploitation, (b) labour exploitation, (c) domestic servitude and (d) other purposes in each of the last five years. [291030]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 14 September 2009]: Our latest estimate of the scale of human trafficking is that at any one time in 2003, there were up to 4,000 women in the UK who were potentially victims of human trafficking. In April 2009 the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre estimated that there are approximately 325 children trafficked into the UK each year.
We are currently undertaking work to produce a new estimate of trafficking for sexual exploitation. We aim to publish this by the end of the year.
There are currently no estimates on the numbers of labour trafficking victims (including victims of domestic servitude).
Mr. Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps his Department takes to (a) monitor and (b) evaluate the (i) work and (ii) performance of the competent authority under the national referral mechanism for victims of trafficking. [291031]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 14 September 2009]: All efforts to tackle trafficking are monitored and scrutinised by the quarterly Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group on Trafficking chaired by myself.
Further scrutiny of trafficking issues is provided by a non-governmental organisation stakeholder group, which I chair alongside the Solicitor-General. The UK action plan on trafficking also provides specific commitments to review particular aspects of the Convention implementation, for example the 45 day recovery/reflection period.
A UK Border Force led task force was set up to monitor the implementation of the national referral mechanism (NRM) and to ensure that all parts of it, including the competent authorities, are working effectively. The task force contains representatives from Government Departments, local authorities, the UK Human Trafficking Centre and the non-governmental organisation victim support providers (Eaves Housing, TARA (Scotland), and Migrant Helpline (Northern Ireland). It is currently meeting on a monthly basis and will host a number of expert workshops on 2 October to review NRM performance over its first six months.
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people trafficked into the UK have been flown back to their country of origin (a) in and (b) outside the EU in the last 12 months; and what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of such journeys. [291080]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 14 September 2009]: Between 1 April 2009 and 31 August 2009 a total of 275 referrals into the National Referral Mechanism were recorded by the UK Human Trafficking Centre (UKHTC). These referrals were made by the UK Border Agency, Police Services, Local Authorities and Non-Governmental Agencies. This includes foreign nationals from both within and outside the European Economic Area and British Citizens.
Many of these cases are still under consideration, but UK Border Agency records show that none of those subject to immigration control have been removed or departed voluntarily from the UK. There has therefore been no cost for such journeys to date.
Information on historic cases considered before the new National Referral Mechanism could not be obtained without the detailed examination of individual records at disproportionate cost.
Statistical information on the National Referral Mechanism is published quarterly on the UKHTC website:
http://www.ukhtc.org/#statistical
Statistical information for the period 1 July—30 September will be published on the UKHTC website at the end of September 2009.
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in what proportion of cases referred to the National Referral Mechanism for Victims of Trafficking were individuals found to have had (a) reasonable and (b) conclusive grounds for having been trafficked. [291328]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: Between 1 April 2009 and 31 August 2009 a total of 275 referrals into the national referral mechanism were recorded by the UK Human Trafficking Centre (UKHTC). A total of 196 reasonable grounds decisions were made by competent authorities based in the UKHTC and UK Border Agency during this period. 151 or just over three quarters of these individuals were found to have reasonable grounds to believe that they were trafficked.
During the same period a total of 57 conclusive grounds decisions were made by competent authorities. 43 or roughly three quarters of these individuals were found to have conclusive grounds to believe that they were trafficked.
Statistical information on the national referral mechanism is published quarterly on the UK Human Trafficking Centre’s website
http://www.ukhtc.org/#statistical.
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he plans to extend the role and duties of the United Kingdom Human Trafficking Centre in anticipation of an increase in levels of human trafficking in the period immediately prior to the London 2012 Olympics. [291330]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 16 September 2009]: While there is currently no evidence to suggest that there is an increase in trafficking activity in the run-up to the Olympic games, we are keeping the intelligence under review and planning to deal with any potential increase.
The UKHTC is already engaging with the Olympic Project Group and contributing to the assessment of the threat posed by human trafficking to the 2012 Olympics. In addition the Centre is liaising with police, other agencies, and non- governmental organisations to ensure that intelligence on this issue is regularly reviewed and assessed.
This will form part of our plans to deal with any potential increase and have proactive measures in place.
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many referrals under the National Referral Mechanism for Victims of Trafficking there have been since 1 April 2009; from which countries those referred originated; and which agencies have made such referrals. [291331]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 16 April 2009]: Between 1 April 2009 and 31 August 2009 a total of 275 referrals into the national referral mechanism were recorded by the UK Human Trafficking Centre (UKHTC). These referrals were made by the UK Border Agency, police services, local authorities and non-governmental agencies.
The individuals referred originated from 52 different countries, with the highest numbers coming from China (42), Nigeria (42) and Vietnam (30).
Statistical information on the national referral mechanism is published quarterly on the UKHTC website:
http://www.ukhtc.org/#statistical.
Statistical information for the period 1 July to 30 September will be published on the UKHTC website at the end of September 2009.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects the report on the outcomes of Pentameter 2 to be available. [291746]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The outcomes of the operational phase of Pentameter 2 have been published and are available on the UKHTC website.
Evidence and analysis from Pentameter 2 is being used by the UKHTC to feed into work being undertaken by Regional Intelligence Units and its partners to produce a new estimate on the scale of trafficking for sexual exploitation. We intend to make this estimate available by the end of the year.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many trafficked women have been detained in the UK in each of the last five years; and for how long on average they were detained. [291809]
Alan Johnson: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained by checking individual case files only at disproportionate costs.
Under the National Referral Mechanism process, in place since 1 April 2009, when a Competent Authority establishes reasonable grounds to believe that an individual is a victim of human trafficking, that individual will not be held in immigration detention barring exceptional circumstances. When a Competent Authority identifies a victim of trafficking they should ensure that any agency investigating offences committed by the victim is made aware of the identification decision.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many calls the Identity and Passport Service advice line received in each of the last 12 months. [289522]
Mr. Woolas: The number of calls received by the Passport Adviceline for the previous 12 months, are set out in the following table:
| Number | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 554W—continued
Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent steps his Department has taken to deter the sale of false identity cards on the internet. [291691]
Mr. Woolas: The Identity Cards Act 2006 created new criminal offences covering the possession, control and intent to use false identity cards, including a genuine document that relates to someone else. It is also an offence to make a false identity card or to have apparatus for making false cards. These offences came into force on 7 June 2006 and apply to other official identity documents, including passports, immigration documents and driving licences, as well as driving licences, passports and identity cards issued by other countries.
Identity cards to be issued under the Identity Cards Act later in the year, as well as those already being issued to foreign nationals, are highly secure and protected by a combination of physical and electronic security features designed to prevent forgery and tampering.
Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many record checks have been made against the National Identity Card register by (a) the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency and (b) other Scottish agencies since the introduction of the scheme. [291640]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The National Identity Register will not be in place until the first identity cards are issued to British citizens later in the year. Accordingly, there have yet to be any requests for the provision of information from the register to the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency or to any other Scottish agencies.
Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many employers have been (a) detected and (b) found employing illegal immigrants under the civil penalty system under the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006; and how much has been imposed in fines under that system. [291206]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 has, since it came into force on 29 February 2008, allowed the UK Border Agency to issue civil penalties of up to £10,000 per worker to employers who are found to be liable for employing illegal migrant workers.
Internal management information shows that for the period 29 February 2008 to 31 August 2009, 3509 notices of potential liability were issued to employers
following enforcement visits by UK Border Agency officials of which, 2731 have so far led to notices of actual liability being served against employers, with a potential value of over £27 million in fines.
These figures do not constitute part of National Statistics as they are based on internal management information. The information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols, should be treated as provisional and is subject to change.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to improve conditions for illegal immigrants in the holding area in the UK Border Agency jurisdiction in Calais. [291625]
Mr. Woolas: Both the UK and French Governments remain committed to further joint action to achieve our common goals under the strong UK-French partnership on migration.
Discussions are ongoing for the construction of a secure facility in the UK control zone to replace our existing facility. This will hold and process illegal immigrants found by UK Border Agency officials and their contractors, for short periods, until they can be handed over to the French border police and processed under French law. All details, including financing, are still under discussion between officials.
We continue to develop a package of measures to target, dismantle and prosecute the networks of facilitators and traffickers who exploit illegal immigrants. These measures include world leading technology, enhanced intelligence and closer working between all agencies.
We are concerned about humanitarian situation faced by individuals in the Calais region and will provide support to those in genuine need. However, the message is clear—the only way to live and work in France and the UK is by legal routes.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many illegal immigrants have been detected trying to enter Dover by ferry from Calais in each month since January 2009. [291627]
Mr. Woolas: From 1 January to 31 August 2009 a total of 15,753 individual attempts to enter the UK illegally were detected at the freight and tourist controls at the ferry port in Calais. The totals for each month were as follows:
| Total | |
| Note: These figures have been sourced from locally collated management information held within locally accessed computer systems and do not represent national statistics. They have not been the subject of National Statistics protocols and verification and should therefore be treated as provisional and subject to change. | |
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with his (a) Afghani and (b) Iraqi counterpart on illegal immigration in to the UK from those countries. [291626]
Mr. Woolas: My Noble Friend, Lord West met with the Iraqi Interior Minister when he visited the UK in May and migration was one of the matters they discussed. Officials are in regular contact with the authorities of both countries to discuss migration issues.
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many overstayers have (a) been granted (i) leave to remain and (ii) settlement and (b) been deported or otherwise removed from the UK in each year since 1997. [291300]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost by undertaking a search of individual case records.
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases dealt with under the legacy exercise in which leave to remain in the UK has been granted concerned individuals who (a) had been refused asylum and (b) had been refused leave to remain under the October 2003 family indefinite leave to remain exercise. [291302]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The information requested is not reported on by the Case Resolution Directorate and could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost through the examination of individual case files.
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for indefinite leave to remain from those with (a) 10 years' lawful residence, (b) 14 years' lawful residence or (c) 14 years' unlawful residence are awaiting determination by the UK Border Agency. [291735]
Mr. Woolas: The number of applications awaiting conclusion are:
(1) 3,136 for those with 10 years continuous lawful residence;
(2) 6,900 for those with either 14 years continued residence, lawful or unlawful.
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for indefinite leave to remain from those with 14 years' unlawful residence are awaiting allocation to a caseworker by the UK Border Agency. [291736]
Mr. Woolas: UKBA Management Information records applications from those with over 14 years continuous residence and does not differentiate between residence applications from lawful and unlawful applicants. To ascertain the number would therefore require examination of each application at disproportionate expense.
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have immigrated to the UK who were not British citizens or citizens of another EU member state in each year since 1989. [291837]
Angela E. Smith: I have been asked to reply.
This information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked them to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question concerning how many people have immigrated to the UK who were not British citizens or citizens of another EU member state in each year since 1989. (291837)
Table 1, attached, gives estimates of international immigration of those who were not British citizens or citizens of another EU member state between 1989 and 2007. The estimates for 1989 and 1990 are derived from the International Passenger Survey (IPS) only. The estimates for 1991 to 2007 are IPS-based but have also been adjusted to account for asylum seekers, people migrating to and from the Republic of Ireland, and people whose intended length of stay has changed from their original intentions. The information required to make these adjustments is not available prior to 1991. Estimates of the number of immigrants by citizenship are published and can be found on the ONS website at:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=507
| Table 1: International immigration: United Kingdom: Estimates 1989 to 2007, non-EU citizens | |
| Thousand | |
| (1) Estimates from 1989 and 1990 are based on the International Passenger Survey (IPS) only. (2) Estimates from 1991 to 2007 are based on the IPS and adjusted for asylum seekers, people migrating to and from the Republic of Ireland, and people whose intended length of stay has changed from their original intentions | |
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) employment-related grants of settlement, (b) family formation and reunion grants of settlement and (c) other grants of settlement on a discretionary basis have been made in (i) each quarter since 1 January 2006 and (ii) each year since 1992. [291838]
Mr. Woolas:
The latest quarterly figures were published in table 14 in the “Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summary, United Kingdom—Second Quarter
2009”. A copy of the table is as follows. Data for quarter three are scheduled for publication on 26 November 2009.
Home Office statistical publications are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
The latest annual figures from 1997 are given in table 1. It is not possible to provide information in the format requested prior to 1997 as this would incur disproportionate cost.
| Table 1: Grants of settlement by category of grant, excluding EEA and Swiss nationals( 1,2) 1997 to 2008, United Kingdom | ||||||
| Number of persons | ||||||
| Broad category of grant | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 |
|
Permit-free employment, businessman, persons of independent means | ||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 558W—continued
| Number of persons | ||||||
| Broad category of grant | 2003( 3) | 2004( 4, 5) | 2005( 4) | 2006( 4) | 2007( 4, 6) | 2008( 4, 6 *) |
|
Permit-free employment, businessman, persons of independent means | ||||||
| * = Provisional n/a = Not applicable (1) Nationals of EU accession countries are included or excluded according to their accession date. (2) Data from 2003 exclude dependants of EEA and Swiss nationals in confirmed relationships granted permanent residence. (3) Excludes reconsideration cases. (4) May include a small number of cases in which a decision is recorded twice, where an individual has dual nationality. (5) Includes nationals of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia before 1 May 2004, but excludes them from this date. (6) Excludes Bulgaria and Romania. (7) In 2006 the qualifying period for settlement in all employment-related categories changed from four to five years. (8) Includes grants under the Family ILR exercise. (9) Excludes reconsideration cases and the outcome of appeals. (10) Spouses and dependants joining British citizens or persons previously granted settlement. (11) Includes civil and unmarried partners. (12) Data for 2007 and 2008 include persons granted indefinite leave outside the immigration rules under measures aimed at clearing the backlog of outstanding unresolved cases. Data rounded to the nearest 5. | ||||||
| Table 14: Grants of settlement( 1, 2, 3) by category of grant, excluding EEA and Swiss nationals( 4, 5,) Q1 2006 to Q2 2009 | ||||||||||
| Number of persons | ||||||||||
| Broad category of grant | 2006 | 2007 | ||||||||
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total | |
|
Permit-free employment, businessman, persons of independent means | ||||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 562W—continued
| Number of persons | |||||||
| 2008( p, r) | 2009( p) | ||||||
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total | Q1 | Q2 | |
|
Permit-free employment, businessman, persons of independent means | |||||||
| (P) = Provisional figures. (R) = revised figures. (1) Figures rounded to the nearest 5 and may not sum to the totals shown because of independent rounding. (2) Includes reconsideration cases and the outcome of appeals. (3) May include a small number of cases in which a decision is recorded twice, where an individual has dual nationality. (4) Data exclude dependants of EEA and Swiss nationals in confirmed relationships granted permanent residence. (5) Excludes Bulgaria and Romania from 1 January 2007. (6) In April 2006, the qualifying period for settlement in all employment-related categories changed from 4 to 5 years delaying grants of settlement that would otherwise have occurred earlier. (7) Asylum-related grants of settlement were at high levels between Q1 2006 and Q2 2007 due to the Family Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) exercise and due to grants to persons given exceptional leave four years previously. (8) Excludes reconsideration cases and the outcome of appeals. (9) Exceptional leave to remain (ELR), Humanitarian Protection (HP), Discretionary Leave (DL). (10) Spouses and dependants joining British citizens or persons previously granted settlement. (11) Includes civil and unmarried partners. (12) Data from Q3 2007 include persons granted indefinite leave outside the immigration rules under measures aimed at clearing the backlog of outstanding unresolved cases. | |||||||
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many grants of settlement have been made to persons granted indefinite leave outside the immigration rules under measures aimed at clearing the backlog of unresolved cases in each year since the inception of such measures. [291841]
Mr. Woolas: The Case Resolution Directorate was set up in April 2007 to deal with the backlog of unresolved asylum cases. The Case Resolution Directorate grants both indefinite leave to remain and limited leave depending on the individual circumstances of the case. UKBA does not hold records of the number of individuals granted Indefinite Leave to Remain each year and this information could be obtained only at disproportionate costs.
Lin Homer, the Chief Executive of the United Kingdom Border Agency, provides a six monthly written update to the Home Affairs Select Committee which details the total number of concluded cases, broken down by removals, grants of status and other conclusions. Copies of these letters are available in the House of Commons Library.
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Parliamentary Business Unit of the Immigration and Nationality Department plans to reply to the letters of 26 June and 8 July 2009 from the hon. Member for Edinburgh West on Ezekiel Nutebuka. [289262]
Mr. Woolas: The UK Border Agency Deputy Director for the North West, (Kevin Romano), wrote to the hon. Member on 28 July.
Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how long on average it takes for the outcome of an immigration appeal to be communicated to those officials responsible for implementing the decision. [291873]
Mr. Woolas: Information on the average length of time it takes for the outcome of an immigration appeal to be communicated to those officials responsible for implementing the decision is not available. This can be obtained only at a disproportionate cost by examining individual case records.
The UK Border Agency has, however, recently reviewed the processes involved in granting status following a successful appeal. The review has identified potential process amendments to make the system more timely and a workshop to consider how changes could be implemented has recently taken place.
One of these amendments includes looking into the possibility of introducing targets for the granting of status following an allowed appeal. Arrangements have been made to monitor progress in this area.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he last met his French counterpart to discuss immigration issues; and if he will make a statement. [291623]
Mr. Woolas: The UK and French Governments maintain regular contact in the area of immigration. I met with Eric Besson, the French Minister for Immigration, Integration, National Identity and Solidarity-based Development at the UK-France summit in Evian on 6 July 2009, where we both committed to further action to combat illegal immigration, including through strengthening security at the shared border and taking resolute action to reduce the pull factors for illegal immigrants and criminal networks.
Dr. Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when his Department plans to announce its policy conclusions following the end of the vehicle immobilisation consultation. [290988]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 14 September 2009]: The public consultation on the licensing of vehicle immobilisation businesses ended on 23 July. Over 500 responses have been received. These are being analysed and will be published in due course.
Proposals for the licensing of vehicle immobilisation businesses were also included in the proposed 5th session Policing, Crime and Private Security Bill in the Draft
Legislative Programme consultation which was published in June 2009. The Government's 5th session Legislative Programme will be announced by Her Majesty The Queen on 18 November.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what mechanisms are in place for the management of the performance of the Independent Safeguarding Authority. [289345]
Mr. Hanson: The Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) are sponsored by the Home Office and responsible to the Home Secretary for ensuring they exercise their functions effectively and appropriately. The ISA Performance Management Framework is currently being developed and will include monitoring of the ISA business plan, service plans and key performance indicators. The ISA Board receive monthly performance reports, and monthly reporting of performance is submitted to the Home Office through its sponsor unit. Performance information will be published in the ISA's annual report.
Staff performance is monitored through a performance development review process.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 565W—continued
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) pursuant to the answer of 9 July 2009, Official Report, column 963W, on the internet, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of sponsoring such systems in each of the next five years; [289050]
(2) for what reasons such communications data are collected; [289051]
(3) on how many occasions stored communications data have been used in the last two years; [289052]
(4) what contribution internet service providers make to the cost of systems sponsored by his Department; [289053]
(5) what proportion of the cost of sponsoring systems to enable communications service providers to store communications data his Department funds; [289048]
(6) to what use his Department puts the information stored by communication services providers; how often it has accessed such stored information in each of the last five years; what steps his Department takes to ensure the security of such information; and on how many occasions in the last five years such information has assisted in the positive identification of a person preparing terrorist acts. [289448]
Mr. Hanson: Communications service providers (CSP) are reimbursed by Government grant for their reasonable and agreed costs in retaining communications data that they are required or permitted to retain under the Data Retention (EC Directive) Regulations 2009 or under the code of practice on data retention approved by Parliament under Part 11 of the Anti-Terrorism Crime and Security Act 2001 (ATCSA).
The Regulations require the retention of communication data for the investigation, detection and prosecution of serious crime. The ATCSA permits communications
data retention for the purposes of safeguarding national security and for the purposes of preventing or detecting crime. The Government grant covers the total cost of installing or modifying equipment or implementing new processes to enable the effective and efficient retention of communications data. An independent and regulated audit firm is retained by the Home Office to ensure that costs are reasonable; that the reimbursement is for legitimate expenditure; and that CSPs do not derive commercial benefit from processes developed with these grants. CSPs are required to contribute if they receive a commercial benefit.
The independent and regulated audit firm also conducts security assessments to ensure that each CSP's data retention solution meets both industry best practice and Government and law enforcement rules on handling personal data.
The passing of the security assessment is a requirement of being reimbursed by the Home Office.
The UK Borders Agency (UKBA) is the only part of the Home Office that is able to acquire communications data. The UKBA acquires communications data to prevent and detect crime in relation to immigration offences or customs detection work at the UK borders. The Interception of Communications Commissioner compiles statistics on the acquisition of communications data by public authorities under the regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. In calendar year 2008 there were 504,073 requirements made of CSPs; the corresponding figure for 2007 was 519,260. The Interception Commissioner has not detailed the figures by individual public authority.
The forecast expenditure on communication data retention systems is £30.35 million which is broken down as per the following table:
| £ million | ||
| Financial year | Capital | Resource |
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to reply to the letter of 13 July 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr Muhammad Irfan. [290646]
Alan Johnson [holding answer 9 September 2009]: I wrote to my right hon. Friend on 8 September 2009.
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to reply to the letter to him dated 27 July 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr S Malik. [290990]
Alan Johnson [holding answer 14 September 2009]: I wrote to my right hon. Friend on 10 September 2009.
Mr. Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to respond to the letter of 27 July 2009 from the hon. Member for Walsall North concerning a constituent. [291088]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 14 September 2009]: My hon. Friend’s letter was passed to the Chief Executive of the UK Border Agency for reply. The Chief Executive replied on 11 September 2009.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his estimate is of the cost Merseyside police has incurred in investigating the case of Michael Shields. [291013]
Alan Johnson [holding answer 14 September 2009]: The Home Office does not hold this information. This is a matter for the chief constable of Merseyside.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department by what means persons who (a) hold and (b) wish to renew a passport will be able to opt out of the National Identity Register. [290464]
Mr. Hanson: For the time being, the identity details of anyone issued with a passport will continue to be held on the existing passport database by the Identity and Passport Service and from this autumn, the identity details of anyone issued with an identity card will be held on the National Identity Register.
However, the Government intend to legislate, so that anyone applying for a passport or identity card from 2012 onwards would have their identity details held on a single National Identity Register and would be offered a choice of receiving a separate identity card or passport or both documents.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what data his Department holds on the relationship between viewing images of child abuse online and child abuse. [291750]
Mr. Alan Campbell: This is a subject that is of concern to the UK and other countries, and earlier this year law enforcement, represented for the UK by the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP), government and academic experts from the G8 nations and others came together to discuss these issues. This led to a G8 Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial Statement on “The risk to children posed by child pornography offenders”. The experts concluded that there was a relationship between viewing and contact offending, although more work was required to determine the exact nature of that relationship. Additionally there was a recognition that, based on conviction evidence a significant proportion of “image” offenders had committed some form of contact offence; and the exchange of child abuse images and communication between child sexual offenders was used by them to legitimise and normalise their beliefs and behaviours providing a social context which encourages the further exploitation of children.
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate his Department has made of the change in the number of knife and sharp instrument offences recorded by the police between 2007-08 and 2008-09. [289596]
Alan Johnson: Comparisons between 2007-08 and 2008-09 are possible for the offences of homicide (figures for 2008-09 are provisional), attempted murder and robbery.
Homicides and attempted murders are rare and account for less than one per cent of all knife offences. As such, comparisons should be interpreted with caution.
Information for these offences are given in the following table.
Additional offence categories (threats to kill, ABH, sexual assault and rape offences where a knife was involved) were added to the knife crime collection in 2008-09, therefore comparisons are not possible.
For GBH offences, it is not possible to compare between 2007-08 and 2008-09. This is due to a change in the clarification rules for recording GBH with intent, and a change in the definition of GBH without intent. Under advice from the National Statistician the offences of GBH with and without intent and ABH and other injury were combined when published. Further information is given in Box 2.1 on page 14 of Crime in England and Wales, 2008-09: Volume 1.
| Number of knife and sharp instrument offences recorded by the police for homicide, attempted murder and robbery | |||
| Offence | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | Percentage change between 2007-08 and 2008-09 |
| (1) Includes provisional figures for 2008-09. For 2007-08, offences are those currently recorded by the police as at 4 November 2008 and are subject to revision as cases are dealt with by the police and by the courts, or as further information becomes available. | |||
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of (a) deaths and (b) injuries arising from knives used in the course of a crime (i) in total and (ii) per person in (A) England and (B) Wales in each year since 1997. [291170]
Mr. Hanson [holding answer 14 September 2009]: Centrally available information relates to homicides by sharp instrument recorded in England and Wales each year from 1997-98 to 2007-08.
Injuries data are not collected centrally.
| Homicides currently recorded( 1) where apparent method of killing is sharp instrument( 2) : England and Wales 1997-98 to2007-08( 3) | ||
| Year offence initially recorded as homicide( 4) | England | Wales |
| (1) As at 4 November 2008; figures are revised as cases are dealt with by the police and by the courts, or as further information becomes available. (2) Includes knives as well as other sharp instruments. (3) Data for 2008-09 are scheduled to be published in January 2009. (4) Offences are shown according to the year in which the police initially recorded the offence as homicide. This is not necessarily the year in which the incident took place or the year in which any court decision was made. | ||
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) under 18-year-olds and (b) 18-year-olds and over were convicted in each police authority area of illegally carrying (i) knives and (ii) other weapons in (A) 2007-08 and (B) 2008-09; and if he will make a statement. [290972]
Mr. Hanson [holding answer 14 September 2009]: The information is provided by the Ministry of Justice.
Information showing the number of defendants found guilty at all courts of illegally carrying knives and other weapons in England and Wales, broken down by age and force for 2007 (latest available) can be viewed in the table. Court proceedings data are published by calendar year; 2007 is the latest available, data for 2008 are due to be available towards the end of 2009.
The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offence for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.
| Number of defendants found guilty at all courts for illegally carrying knives( 1) and other weapons( 2) , England and Wales, by age and force, 2007( 3, 4) | |||
| Force | Age | Knives | Other weapons |
| (1) Covers; Criminal Justice Act 1988 S139, S139A(1)(5)(a) (2) Covers; Criminal Justice Act 1988 S139A(2)(5)(b). Firearms Act 1968 S1(1). S5(1). S5(1)(b),S5(1A)(b)('c),(d)(e)(f) or (g), 5(1A)(a), S2(1), S16.S16A, S17(2), S18 (1), S19, S21(4) S22(2),(3)1(4),{5). Prevention of Crime Act 1953 S1(1). (3) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (4) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Source: Evidence and Analysis Unit—Office for Criminal Justice Reform Ref: IOS 445-09 | |||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 572W—continued
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many full-time equivalent members of staff are employed in his Department's Olympic Security Directorate; and at what cost in 2009-10. [291155]
Mr. Woolas: [holding answer 14 September 2009]: There are currently 22 FTE staff in post in the Olympic and Paralympics Security Directorate. As Olympic security projects develop this will rise, on current projections, to 83.5 FTE. The forecast full year salary costs for Olympic Security and Paralympic Security Directorate are £3.6 million.
Mr. Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the weight notified of (a) opiate raw materials, (b) opiate medicinal products, (c) oxycodone raw material and (d) codeine raw material was seized by UK drug enforcement authorities in each year between 1999 and 2009. [290064]
Mr. Alan Campbell: Available data on seizures of opiate raw materials, medicinal opium and oxycodone for 2006-07 and 2007-08 (latest available) are provided in the following table. Data on the separate preparation types seized are provided separately of amounts of weighed items, as it is not possible to accurately estimate the weights of drugs seized in the form of wraps or bags.
Information on seizures of raw codeine is not available.
Data on seizures for the drugs requested are presented as 'Other Class A' in publications. These seizures cannot be extracted from these classifications prior to 2006-07.
Data for 2008-09 are scheduled to be published in October 2009.
| Quantity( 1) of seizures made by the police for selected drugs, by drug preparation type and year, England and Wales 2006-07 and 2007-08 | ||
| Quantity of seizures | ||
| Drug Type | 2006-07 | 2007-08 |
| (1)Drugs can be seized in a variety of forms or preparation types. In this table, data on the separate preparation types seized are provided separately of amounts of weighed items, as it is not possible to accurately estimate the weights of drugs seized in the form of wraps or bags. | ||
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many passport applications and renewals were processed at each Identity and Passport Service location in each of the last 12 months. [289524]
Mr. Woolas: The following table shows the number of renewal applications and the total of all applications processed by the IPS examination teams from each region from July 2008 to June 2009.
| Region | Renewals | Total | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 576W—continued
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average length of time taken to process passport applications and renewals was at each Identity and Passport Service location in each of the last 12 months. [289525]
Mr. Woolas: The following table show the average days taken to process all straight forward properly completed applications for each of the last 12 months and for each regional office.
| 2008 | 2009 | ||||||||||||
| Regional Office | Jul | Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov | Dec | Jan | Feb | Ma r | Apr | May | Jun | Overall average days |
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what targets the Identity and Passport Service has set for processing of passport applications and renewals. [289526]
Mr. Woolas: The Identity and Passport Service’s published target for the processing of passport application is: to deliver 99.5 per cent. of straightforward online, partner and postal adult renewal and first time child applications within 10 working days.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what evidence his Department used to evaluate the effectiveness of e-passports on (a) security and (b) efficiency of border immigration arrangements; and if he will make a statement. [291313]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The introduction by the UK of the e-Passport containing the holder’s personal details and facial image on a contactless chip was part of a major international drive to make travel documents more secure. The UK e-Passport’s physical and electronic security features are a significant impediment to forgers and counterfeiters. The UK e-Passport is recognised as a high integrity document, and there is no evidence that anyone has modified or changed the data within the chip on the e-Passport in a way that would pass through the checks made at UK border control.
In terms of security, if the UK had not introduced the e-Passport then there was a risk that the UK passport would have received greater attention from fraudsters and counterfeiters. Also, UK nationals would have been treated less favourably than those of other nations at border controls and not have been able to travel visa free to the United States.
The greater assurance and integrity offered by the e-Passport enables border control authorities worldwide to spend more time dealing with higher risk passengers. Accessing the data held on the e-Passport automatically, enables UK Border Force Officers to use their time more efficiently on improved security and fraud checks, making our border even more secure. Additionally, the UK Border Agency is encouraging e-Passport holders to use the facial recognition gates currently being trialled in the UK, providing the travelling public with an easier passage through the controls.
Mr. Ruffley:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in respect of how many incidents of (a) violence against the person, (b) sexual offences, (c) robbery, (d) burglary, (e) theft, (f) fraud and forgery, (g) criminal damages and (h) drugs offences
police cautions were given in (i) 2007-08 and (ii) 2008-09; and what proportion of such incidents was first offences in each such year. [290718]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The numbers of cautions issued by the police for the specified offence groups are given in the table. Information on whether such incidents were first offences cannot be derived from the police recorded crime statistics collected centrally by the Home Office.
| Number of cautions issued by police for each main offence group, England and Wales | ||
| Offence group | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of their working time on average (a) all police officers and (b) patrol officers spent on (i) incident-related paperwork, (ii) non-incident-related paperwork and (c) patrol in England and Wales in 2008-09; and what the frontline policing measure for each police force in England and Wales was in that year. [291246]
Mr. Hanson [holding answer 16 September 2009]: It is not possible to supply the data requested, because ABC data collection has been discontinued.
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the merits of providing stab-proof vests for (a) police officers and (b) police community support officers. [289466]
Mr. Hanson:
The Government are clear that police officers should have the best possible protection when facing the physical violence that is sometimes directed against them. The Home Office Scientific Development
Branch (HOSDB) provides scientific and technical advice to the police that covers the development of police specific standards for personal protective equipment, including body armour.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to increase (a) racial equality within and (b) recruitment of people from ethnic minorities to the West Midlands police service. [291529]
Mr. Hanson: Recruitment to and equality and diversity issues within West Midlands police are a matter for the chief constable. However, all 43 Home Office forces currently use the Police SEARCH assessment centre for purposes of officer recruitment, which objectively and fairly assesses applicants against the skills and abilities required to perform effectively as a police constable.
In addition, the National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA) encourages police forces to use positive action initiatives to target recruits from ethnic minority and underrepresented groups and a Positive Action Events Toolkit, produced by the Home Office in conjunction with police authorities, is currently available for use by all police forces. The NPIA is also actively engaging with groups such as the National Black Police Association and the National Association of Muslim Police to attract candidates for future roles.
To assist police forces further, the NPIA are launching an Equality Standard for the police service later this year, which will be available to every police force in England and Wales. The Equality Standard has been designed to contribute to attracting, retaining and developing a skilled and diverse workforce to reflect the communities served.
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the police authority precept was for each authority in England and Wales in (a) 2007-08 and (b) 2008-09; and what percentage of each authority's total income precept funding was requested in each year. [291248]
Mr. Hanson [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The information requested is set out in the following table.
| 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |||
| Police authorities | Council tax requirement (£ million) | Budget met by council tax (percentage) | Council tax requirement (£ million) | Budget met by council tax (percentage) |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 580W—continued
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officer working days were lost due to (a) stress and (b) illness in each police force in (i) 2007-08 and (ii) 2008-09. [291247]
Mr. Hanson [holding answer 16 September 2009]: Breakdowns for the type of sickness absence are not collected centrally.
Data on the amount of police officer working days lost to sickness are not available, but data on the amount of working hours are given in the annual Police Performance information. These are shown as the average number of police officer hours lost per person per year based on figures provided by individual forces.
http://www.police.homeoffice.gov.uk/performance-and-measurement/performance-assessment/.
Data for 2008-09 will be available after publication of the Analysis of Policing and Community Safety (APACS) data later in the year.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners have been granted early release in the last 12 months; and how many such persons had been convicted of violent offences. [290103]
Mr. Straw: I have been asked to reply.
Eligible prisoners may be released into the community earlier than the half way point of their sentence under the home detention curfew (HDC) or end of custody licence (ECL) schemes.
I refer the hon. Member to the bulletin, Offender Management Caseload Statistics, 2008, which was published on 31 July 2009. Copies have been placed in the Libraries of this House. In addition, information on the end of custody licence scheme is published on a monthly basis on the Ministry of Justice website. The latest report relates to the position at the end of July 2009 and can be found at the following website:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/endofcustodylicence.htm.
I hope that this will provide additional context to the statistics supplied in the answer.
Between September 2008 and August 2009, there were 30,719 prisoners released from all prison establishments in England and Wales under the end of custody licence scheme, of which 6,300 were originally detained for an
offence of violence against the person. Those convicted of the most serious violent offences (which includes, for example, all terrorism legislation offences, manslaughter, wounding with intent to commit grievous bodily harm and cruelty to children) are not eligible for release on ECL.
During 2008, there were 11,721 prisoners released from all prison establishments in England and Wales under the home detention curfew scheme, of which 2,160 were originally detained for offences of violence against the person. This information can be found in table 9.16 of the Offender Management Caseload Statistics at the following website:
http://www.justice.gov.uk//publications/prisonandprobation.htm.
The figures quoted above have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many brothels have been raided by the police in England and Wales in each of the last three years; and how much money has been seized under proceeds of crime legislation as a result of such raids. [291081]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 14 September 2009]: This information is not available.
Lembit Öpik: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been (a) arrested for and (b) charged with offences related to taking photographs in public places in the last 12 months. [291680]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The information requested on arrests is not collected centrally.
The arrests collection held by the Home Office covers arrests for recorded crime (notifiable offences) only, broken down at a main offence group level, covering categories such as violence against the person and robbery.
Offences related to taking photographs in public places are not notifiable offences and do not form part of this collection.
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has made an assessment of the merits of merging the Airwave network with the London Secure Communications Network before the London 2012 Olympics. [289369]
Mr. Hanson: The additional communications requirements for the Olympics have been identified for all emergency services and drawn together into a single requirement. These enhancements are on schedule to be delivered for the 2012 Olympic games.
Mr. Watson:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the emergency
telecommunications support network will be operational before the London 2012 Olympics; and if he will make a statement. [289371]
Mr. Hanson: The enhancements to the emergency services Airwave Radio System required for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games are currently on schedule.
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the (a) capacity, (b) coverage and (c) resilience which the Airwave network will have by the time of the 2012 Olympics. [289372]
Mr. Hanson: As part of the Home Office-led 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Safety and Security Programme, operational requirements for additional Airwave capacity and coverage for the 2012 Games have been captured for all emergency services.
These, together with data about the current capacity and coverage of the Airwave system, have formed the basis for negotiations with the supplier regarding enhancements to the Airwave network for the Olympics. Some additional resilience is planned for critical elements as part of this Olympic enhancement.
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many racially-motivated crimes were committed in each police force area in 2008-09. [290974]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 14 September 2009]: The available statistics relate to racially or religiously aggravated offences recorded by the police for some specific crime categories and are given in the table. It is not possible to separately identify those of a racial nature from those of a religious nature.
| Total racially or religiously aggravated offences( 1) recorded by the police in England and Wales, 2008-09 | |
| Police force area | Number of offences |
| (1) Includes the following racially or religiously aggravated offences: GBH without intent, ABH or other injury, harassment, public fear, alarm or distress, assault without injury and criminal damage. | |
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persistent and prolific offenders were identified in each police force area in (a) 2007-08 and (b) 2008-09. [290973]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 14 September 2009]: Data from the performance management arrangements for the Prolific and other Priority Offender Programme provides the number of such offenders identified through partnership arrangements in each police force area. The data is provided in the table. The data covers the financial year 2007-08 from April 2007 up to March 2008, and the financial year 2008-09 from April 2008 up to March 2009. It is the most recent data available. These figures rely on the accuracy and completeness of the data provided locally by Prolific and other Priority Offender schemes.
| Number of Prolific and other Priority Offenders by police force area, 2007-08 and 2008-09 | ||
| Police force area | 1 April 2007-31 March 2008 | 1 April 2008-31 March 2009 |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 584W—continued
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff were working in his Department's Return and Reintegration Directorate on 1 July (a) 2006, (b) 2007, (c) 2008 and (d) 2009. [291204]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 14 September 2009]: There is no Return and Reintegration Directorate within the United Kingdom Border Agency, nor was there one in its predecessor organisations.
The Returns and Reintegration Fund is a cross-Government fund managed from, and by, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cautions were issued in each police force area for riding a bicycle on the pavement in the last year for which figures are available. [289254]
Mr. Alan Campbell:
Information provided by the Ministry of Justice, showing the number of offenders cautioned for “Riding a pedal cycle on a footpath” in England and Wales, broken down by police force area
in 2007 (latest available) can be viewed in following the table. Data for 2008 will be available in the autumn of 2009.
The cautions statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been cautioned for two or more offences at the same time the principal offence is the more serious offence.
| Number of offenders cautioned( 1) for “riding a pedal cycle on a footpath” under section 72 of the 1835 Highway Act, in England and Wales, broken down by police force area, 2007( 2,3,4) | |
| Police force area | Cautions |
| (1) From 1 June 2000 the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 came into force nationally and removed the use of cautions for persons under 18 and replaced them with reprimands and warnings. These figures have been included in the totals. (2) The cautions statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been cautioned for two or more offences at the same time the principal offence is the more serious offence. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Where a police force area is not listed in the above table, nil data are appropriate. Source: Evidence and Analysis Unit—Office for Criminal Justice Reform | |
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his Department was represented at the RSPCA Status Dogs Summit 2009. [290370]
Mr. Alan Campbell: The then Home Office Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Gedling (Mr. Coaker), sent a pre-recorded speech that was shown at the RSPCA Status Dogs Summit 2009.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment he has made of the case for joining the Schengen Information System in 2009-10; and what account he has taken in that assessment of the UK's inability to join the upgraded Schengen Information System II until 2012. [291336]
Alan Johnson: [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The UK originally committed to connecting to the first generation Schengen Information System (SIS). However, during the development stage of the UK's national system, the European Commission proposed developing an upgraded central system, known as SIS II. The latter system is capable of handling with European partners additional useful functions for law enforcement such as biometric data and would represent an improvement over the original SIS system.
We therefore took the decision that the UK should refocus its development resources to connect to SIS II. This remains the case.
The UK's efforts are still focused on developing the UK connection to the central SIS II system. However, the scheduled launch date for the central SIS II system has been put back by the European Commission from April 2010 to the fourth quarter of 2011, primarily due to technical difficulties experienced by the Commission's contractor. This means that the UK SIS II service will not be able to connect to the EU central system until December 2011 at the earliest.
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Serious Organised Crime Agency staff have been assaulted in the course of their work since the Agency was established. [291639]
Mr. Alan Campbell: Since the Serious Organised Crime Agency was established in April 2006, six officers have reported being assaulted in the course of their work. This figure includes three officers who were driven at by suspects whiles attempting to effect arrest.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Serious Organised Crime Agency officers are based in posts abroad. [291624]
Mr. Alan Campbell: As of 16 September 2009, the Serious Organised Crime Agency had 133 officers based in posts abroad.
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many registered (a) sex offenders and (b) sex offenders convicted of offences involving minors were resident in each police authority area in (i) 2007-08 and (ii) 2008-09. [291249]
Mr. Alan Campbell [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The number of registered sex offenders resident in each police authority area in 2007-08 is represented in the attached table as reported in the local MAPPA Annual Reports 2007-08. These are the latest data.
The Government do not hold information relating to the number of sex offenders convicted of offences involving minors resident in each police authority area.
| Area | RSOs |
Mr. Goodwill: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many penalty notices for speeding were (a) contested and (b) overturned in each (i) local authority area and (ii) police authority area in each of the last five years. [290210]
Mr. Alan Campbell: Fixed penalty notices (FPNS) cannot be contested or overturned; an FPN is the offer of an opportunity for the recipient to discharge liability to conviction by paying the prescribed amount. A person either accepts the fixed penalty or refuses and insists on the right to a court trial.
Information on the number of persons proceeded against at magistrates courts for speeding offences held by the Ministry of Justice cannot separately identify the number of prosecutions resulting from refusal of a fixed penalty notice.
Chris Huhne:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times a Taser gun has
been used (a) on a child and (b) within 10 metres of a child in each police authority area in England in the last 12 months. [290762]
Mr. Hanson [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The number of times a Taser has been used on a person under 18 years of age in England and Wales in the 12 months from 1 April 2008 to 31 March 2009 is shown in the table. It was used on 100 occasions and fired 18 times. Information is not collected on the number of times Taser is deployed within 10 metres of a child.
The total number of subjects of all ages exposed to the use of Taser over this period totals 2,083 individuals.
I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave on 23 February 2009, Official Report, column 186W, for similar figures for 2007 and 2008. In 2007, 36 subjects exposed to the use of Taser were reported as aged under 18, with 714 subjects aged 18 years and over. For the period January to August 2008 subjects under the age of 18 totalled 75, compared to 1,349 subjects 18 years and over.
The proportion for each time period is in the ratio of 5 per cent. subjects less than 18 years of age to 95 per cent. of subjects 18 years and over.
| Taser use in England and Wales, 1 April 2008 to 31 March 2009 | |||||
| Usage details | |||||
| Force | <18 years (total) | Discharges | Drive-stuns | Arced | Red Dot |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 589W—continued
| Usage details | ||||
| Force | Aimed | Drawn | 18+ years | Age not stated |
| Note: ‘Use’ as defined by ACPO: Taser Operational Guidance December 2008 policy section 5.2: The term ‘use of the Taser’ will include any of the following actions carried out in an operational setting: Drawing of a Taser in circumstances where any person perceives the action as a use of force. Sparking of the Taser commonly known as “arcing”. Aiming of the Taser or placing the laser sight red dot onto a subject. Firing of a Taser so that the barbs are discharged at a subject. Application and Discharge of a Taser in “drive stun mode” to a subject. | ||||
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information his Department holds on attacks on the UK (a) planned and (b) executed by terrorist groups in the last 10 years. [290640]
Mr. Hanson [holding answer 9 September 2009]: There have been numerous disruptions to terrorist and terrorist related activity since 1999. Since 2001 the police and security services have disrupted over a dozen attempted terrorist plots in the UK, including a planned attack which followed two weeks after the London bombings on 7 July 2005.
A list of actual and planned attacks is not available as the information is not held centrally and has not been compiled in this way. We cannot disclose the number of planned attacks due to national security constraints.
The Security Service website lists the notable convictions that have thwarted terrorist activity from 2000-07. The list attached will be placed in the House Library.
http://www.mi5.gov.uk/output/terrorist-plots-in-the-uk.html
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people arrived at UK airports without valid identity documents in each of the last three years for which figures are available. [291778]
Mr. Woolas: A total of 6,787 people arrived at UK airports without a document in the last three years.
| Passengers with no documentation | |
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance his Department has provided to (a) police forces and (b) police authorities on employment targets in respect of (i) Travellers and (ii) under-represented groups. [290035]
Mr. Hanson: As set out in the Policing Green Paper: Cm 7448 “From the Neighbourhood to National: Policing Our Communities Together,” police authorities are now responsible for setting ambitious local employment targets in agreement with forces and in consultation with communities, police officers and staff. This local approach provides more local ownership of targets and will help to reflect the needs of local communities.
Guidance published by the Home Office in 2004, “The Breaking Through Action Plan - Promoting Minority Ethnic Employment in the Police Service,” remains relevant as guidance to police authorities and forces on improving minority ethnic representation in the police service, and also illustrates approaches which are relevant for other under-represented groups. More recently, the position on Minority Ethnic Recruitment, Retention and Progression in the Police Service was the subject of an Assessment by the former Policing Minister, published on 20 November 2008.
Following the Policing Green Paper, the Association of Police Authorities has published a guidance document for its members - “Local employment targets for under-represented groups - Setting employment targets in local policing plans.” The guidance provides advice on setting appropriate targets on race and gender representation, and on consideration of targets relating to wider local diverse communities such as the Gypsy and Traveller community.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 591W—continued
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Perth and North Perthshire of 29 June 2009, Official Report, column 71W, on immigration controls, how many UK Border Agency call centres are in operation in each location. [290904]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: UKBA operates 41 call centres, located in 39 countries. Some call centres service more than one country. Countries which are not covered by these call centres but which have a visa application centre based at the embassy or high commission operate an “in-house” telephone service.
With the exception of the UK (which has call centres in Liverpool, Sheffield and Croydon), the operation of all other call centres is outsourced as follows:
CSC Worldbridge operates three call centres, located in Brazil (servicing the Americas), Algeria (servicing North Africa and the Middle East) and Hungary (servicing Europe).
VFS Global operates 34 call centres in the following countries:
Bahrain
Oman
Bangladesh
Pakistan
China
Philippines
Ethiopia
Qatar
Ghana
Russia
India
Saudi Arabia
Indonesia
Singapore
Japan
South Africa
Kazakhstan
South Korea
Kenya
Sri Lanka
Kuwait
Syria
Malawi
Taiwan
Malaysia
Thailand
Mozambique
UAE
Namibia
Uganda
Nepal
Ukraine
Nigeria
Zimbabwe
Call Centre Services Pty Ltd operates one call centre in Australia for callers from Australia / New Zealand.
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many foreign national prisoners bailed by the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal were being monitored by the UK Border Agency in August 2009; [291423]
(2) how many foreign national prisoners bailed on release from custody the UK Border Agency was monitoring in August 2009. [291424]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The chief executive of the UK Border Agency updated the Home Affairs Select Committee on this subject in July, and is due to give a further update in October. This letter will be made available in the House Library.
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of the budget of the UK Border Agency for 2009-10 has been allocated to the Return and Reintegration programme. [290908]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: 0.93per cent. of the 2009-10 full year gross budget of £2,146.1 million has been allocated by the UK Border Agency to the Returns and Reintegration Fund. This is a cross-government fund and is also supported by FCO, DFID and the Ministry of Justice.
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been stripped of UK citizenship under the provisions of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2005 as referred to in the 12 point plan announced by the then Prime Minister in August 2005, in each quarter since the Act came into effect. [291303]
Mr. Woolas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: Since its amendment by section 56 of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006, orders have been issued under section 40 of the British Nationality Act 1981 against three people, depriving them of their British citizenship. The first occurred in the third quarter of 2006, another in the final quarter of 2007 and the third individual had an order made against them in the second quarter of 2009.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what further steps are required for the Independent Safeguarding Authority's Vetting and Barring scheme to become fully operational. [289343]
Mr. Hanson: The Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) is currently working towards the implementation of the next two significant phases of the Vetting and Barring Scheme.
From 12 October 2009 the extension of the barring regime to all regulated activities will come into force. The ISA is planning for a significant increase in workload, ensuring that all relevant systems, staff and training requirements are in place. IT systems will be enhanced to support these changes.
From July 2010 applications and monitoring under the Vetting and Barring Scheme will commence. The ISA is working closely with key partners and suppliers
to ensure the new IT system and associated interfaces are in place and fully tested for July 2010.
Steps are also being taken to ensure an effective interface with the equivalent Scottish scheme.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which posts will require registration with the Independent Safeguarding Authority under the Vetting and Barring scheme. [289344]
Mr. Hanson: Under the Vetting and Barring Scheme individuals apply to become registered with the scheme under section 24 of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. Those individuals seeking to work in either regulated or controlled activities with children or vulnerable adults, as specified under the Act, will need to apply to be registered, as the scheme is phased in.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what percentage of (a) standard checks and (b) enhanced checks by the Criminal Records Bureau took longer than (i) 10 days, (ii) four weeks and (iii) eight weeks to complete in each year since 1997. [290333]
Alan Johnson: Information is not held in the format requested. The Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) operates to a set of published service standards (PSS) which include to issue 90 per cent. of Standard Disclosures within 10 days and 90 per cent of Enhanced Disclosures within 28 days.
The following table illustrates the CRB's performance against the PSS since inception in 2002.
| Published service standards | ||||
| Standard | Enhanced | |||
| Financial year | Target | Performance (percentage) | Target | Performance (percentage) |
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the longest time taken to respond to an application for an (a) standard and (b) enhanced check by the Criminal Records Bureau was in each year since 1997. [290363]
Alan Johnson: The Disclosure process comprises broadly of several stages involving the applicant, the registered body (RB) (the organisation that handles the application on behalf of an employer), the CRB and the police. Each stage is reliant on the accuracy of the data provided by the applicant and the subsequent verification of this data by the RB from the outset.
A number of factors can cause delays, including the length of time it can take for an employer to deal with the initial application; the accurate completion of the application form; the clarity of the information provided; the existence of conviction or non-conviction information and the operational effectiveness of the disclosure units of the police forces involved in the enhanced disclosure process following recent high volumes of applications.
The majority of applications spend between three and four days at the CRB and analysis undertaken by the bureau has shown that the majority of delays that occur do so before the CRB receives an application and after it has been sent to the police.
The CRB have set up an improvement plan with their delivery partners, including the police forces, to address the problems associated with delays. This is aimed at maintaining a balanced output of applications on the system whilst also reducing the number of aged cases. This work has started to show an improvement in turnaround times but the CRB will continue to monitor forces performance in line with their own performance.
Where applications are returned to customers to acquire further information, reminders are issued but some customers can fail to provide this information or withdraw their application from the bureau's systems where they no longer require their disclosure.
The following table provides details of the longest time taken for the completion of a CRB standard and enhanced disclosure in each year since the inception of the bureau. The figures have been calculated based on the date the disclosure was issued in each year, counting back from the date of completion
It is likely that these applications will have been referred back to the applicant/RB; the delays in issue are not necessarily representative of the bureau's performance.
| Financial year | Longest time taken in days- Enhanced disclosure | Longest time taken in days- Standard disclosure |
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with charities on the possible effects of the vetting and barring scheme on trends in the level of volunteering; and if he will make a statement. [291814]
Mr. Hanson: Implementation of the Vetting and Barring Scheme includes a programme of consultation with the voluntary sector through a specific consultation group and a wide range of stakeholder events. The free application for unpaid volunteers has been welcomed along with the reduction in bureaucracy arising from the continuous monitoring element of the scheme. Consultation has not indicated that the scheme is likely to damage levels of volunteering. A number of voluntary sector organisations including Children England, Volunteering England and the Children's Society have indicated that they believe the scheme to be an appropriate response to safeguarding concerns that should not impact adversely on volunteer numbers.
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of incidents of (a) wounding, (b) assault without injury, (c) assault with minor injury and (d) robbery recorded in the British Crime survey were identified by the victim as being carried out by offenders of school age and under, in each of the last 10 years. [289593]
Alan Johnson: The following table shows the percentage of offenders who were perceived to be of school age and under by victims of violent incidents from the British Crime survey (BCS) for surveys between 1999 and 2008-09.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 596W—continued
| Offender characteristics in BCS violent incidents in England and Wales—British Crime Survey | ||||||
| Percentage | ||||||
| Violent offences | ||||||
| Age of offender(s)( 1,2) | All violence( 3) | Wounding | Assault with minor iniury( 4) | Assault with no iniury( 4) | Common assault( 4) | Robbery |
| (1 )Detailed questions about offender(s) are only asked of victims who experienced three or less offences in the last year to minimise respondent burden. Figures here are based on incidents in which the victim could say something about the offender(s). (2) More than one offender could be involved. (3) ‘All violence’ includes wounding, robbery, assault with minor injury and assault with no injury. (4) Prior to 2005-06 assault with minor injury and assault with no injury were included within the broader category of common assault. (5) Separate estimates for children below school age are not available prior to 2004-05 BCS. (6) Unweighted base is the number of victims who were able to say something about offender. | ||||||
Robert Neill: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners whether the Church Commissioners have made an assessment of the merits of allowing their land to be used for eco-town developments. [289357]
Sir Stuart Bell: With the assistance of their professional advisers, the Church Commissioners keep their property holdings under constant review to ensure that development potential is identified, thoroughly assessed and taken forward in the most appropriate way.
When the Government originally announced the eco-town idea, the Commissioners liaised with their advisers to determine whether any potential sites already identified in their portfolio might meet the eco-town criteria or whether any other land might be suitable to accommodate an eco-town. No suitable opportunities emerged and therefore this initiative was not taken forward in relation to the Commissioners' landholdings.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprenticeships have been undertaken by (a) men and (b) women in each (i) region and (ii) industrial sector; and how many were completed in each case. [290221]
Kevin Brennan: Table 1 shows the number of apprenticeship starts by Government Office Region and Gender in 2007-08, the latest year for which full-year figures are available. Table 2 shows the number of apprenticeship achievements by Government Office Region and Gender in 2007-08. This gives the total number of achievements in 2007-08, regardless of the academic year the apprenticeship started.
Tables 3 and 4 show the number of apprenticeship starts and achievements by Government Office Region and Sector Subject Area in 2007-08. Information is not available by 'industrial sector'.
| Table 1: Number of apprenticeship starts by Government Office region and gender, 2007-08 | |||
| Region | Male | Female | Total |
| Table 2: Number of apprenticeship achievements by Government Office region and gender, 2007-08 | |||
| Region | Male | Female | Total |
| Notes: 1. Region is based on home postcode of the learner. 2. Where the postcode is outside of England, or not known, learners are shown in the 'Other' category. 3. Figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred and may therefore not sum to the totals. Source: Work-based Learning Individualised Learning Record | |||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 600W—continued
| Table 3: Number of apprenticeship starts by sector subject area and gender, 2007-08 | |||
| Sector Subject Area | Male | Female | Total |
| Table 4: Number of apprenticeship achievements by sector subject area and gender, 2007-08 | |||
| Sector Subject Area | Male | Female | Total |
| (1) Indicates a value of less than 50. Note: 1. Figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred and may therefore not sum to the totals. Source: Work-based Learning Individualised Learning Record | |||
Mr. Moss: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many Government-funded apprenticeship places were available to young people in (a) England and (b) North East Cambridgeshire in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [291285]
Kevin Brennan [holding answer 16 September 2009]: Table 1 shows the number of Learning and Skills Council funded apprenticeship starts by learners aged under 19 in North East Cambridgeshire parliamentary constituency and England from 2003-04 to 2007-08, the latest year for which full-year figures are available.
| Table 1: Number of apprenticeship starts for learners aged under 19, 2003-04 to 2007-08 | |||||
| Area | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 |
| Notes: 1. Parliamentary constituency is based on home postcode of the learner. 2. The figures provided for England includes learners undertaking apprenticeships in England. It includes those resident in England, a small number of learners which are resident outside of England e.g. in Scotland or Wales, and those where their postcode is not known. 3. Figures for parliamentary constituency have been rounded to the nearest ten and figures for England have been rounded to the nearest hundred. 4. Age Source: Work-based Learning Individualised Learner Record (WBL ILR) is calculated based on age at start of programme. | |||||
The Government are committed to rebuilding apprenticeships. Since 1997 we have witnessed a renaissance in apprenticeships from a low point of 65,000 to a record 225,000 apprenticeship starts in 2007-08, of which 107,600 were by young people (aged under 19). Completion rates are also at a record high with 64 per cent. successfully completing an apprenticeship—up from 37 per cent. in 2004-05. The Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Bill now before Parliament will ensure that an apprenticeship place is available for all suitably qualified young people by 2013.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprenticeships in financial institutions in the City of London there are. [290272]
Kevin Brennan: We do not hold data centrally that can be used to accurately estimate the total number of apprentices within financial institutions in the City of London.
The London Apprenticeships Taskforce is working to expand apprenticeships in all sectors in London, including financial services. Activity to develop apprenticeships in this sector is being supported by the National Skills Academy for Financial Services. Eskills (the sector skills council for business and information technology) is also developing an IT London Action Plan, which aims to expand apprenticeships in London, including in the financial services sector.
Mr. Willis: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many individuals with debts of less than £15,000 filed for bankruptcy in each of the 12 months from April 2008. [289485]
Ian Lucas: The number of individuals with debts of less than £15,000 who filed for bankruptcy in each of the 12 months from April 2008 are as follows:
| Number | |
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many bankruptcies there were in (a) England, (b) Greater Manchester and (c) Stockport of individuals in each age group in each year since 1997. [291309]
Ian Lucas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The available information on the number of bankruptcies in England, Greater Manchester and Stockport, by age group, can be seen in the following tables. Information prior to 2000 is not available on this basis.
| Bankrupts by age, England | |||||||
| Age group( 1) | |||||||
| Under 25 | 25-34 | 35-44 | 45-54 | 55-64 | 65 and over | Unknown | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 603W—continued
| Bankrupts by age, Greater Manchester | |||||||
| Age group( 1) | |||||||
| Under 25 | 25-34 | 35-44 | 45-54 | 55-64 | 65 and over | Unknown | |
| Bankrupts by age, Stockport | |||||||
| Age group( 1) | |||||||
| Under 25 | 25-34 | 35-44 | 45-54 | 55-64 | 65 and over | Unknown | |
| (1) Where the bankrupt has provided a valid postcode (increasing from 88 per cent. of cases in 2000 to 97 per cent. in 2008). | |||||||
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many banks (a) received information on and (b) are operating the Working Capital Guarantee Scheme; how much capital has been loaned to businesses under the scheme to date; and how many businesses have received financial assistance under the scheme. [275879]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 15 May 2009]: The Department sent a mini prospectus to the British Banking Association who circulated it to its members. The Working Capital Scheme is not directly available to businesses; however, £2 billion of guarantees have been provided to banks under the scheme to free up regulatory capital for new lending to UK companies. As a result of action by the Government and the regulatory authorities leading to improvements in the capital position of the UK banking system since the introduction of the WCS, the Government have been able to allocate resource provision for the WCS to other measures to support businesses, including as announced at the Budget 2009 a trade credit insurance ‘top-up’ scheme and a possible new letters of credit scheme in the Export Credit Guarantee Department.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills for what reasons no minutes were taken of the meetings between his Department’s officials and Ministers which took place on 13, 16, 20 and 31 October and 11 December 2008 at which the proposed merger between Lloyds TSB and HSBOS was discussed; and what his Department’s policy is on the minuting of meetings between (a) his Department’s officials and Ministers and (b) his Department’s Ministers or officials and private or public companies. [291361]
Kevin Brennan
[holding answer 16 September 2009]: The purpose of these meetings was to enable the relevant Ministers and officials to consider the substantive issues raised by this case and to ensure the Secretary of State was in a position to take properly informed final decisions in accordance with his statutory duties under the Enterprise Act 2002. No summary of outcomes from the meetings was required to ensure action was taken forward. Ministers had the appropriate material and relevant officials at the meetings. The conclusions reached are reflected either in the subsequent actions taken, advice to Ministers about the next steps, or are otherwise set out in public
statements such as the final decision document which seeks to provide a clear summary of the reasons behind the decision. The Department does not have a specific policy on taking minutes of meetings though there is a general requirement to keep an appropriate record of all departmental business.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans his Department has to increase the availability of cable broadband in the rural areas of (a) North Yorkshire and (b) England; and if he will make a statement. [291697]
Mr. Timms: The cable broadband network in the UK is owned and provided by Virgin Media. It is a commercial decision for them whether they should extend this network. However, the Government are working to implement the key broadband recommendations made in the Digital Britain Report to improve the UK's communications infrastructure, namely around the universal service commitment to broadband and Next Generation broadband.
The Universal Service Commitment will ensure the possibility of universal broadband access to virtually all UK homes and businesses at a speed of at least 2Mbps by 2012. The Network Design and Procurement Group will be responsible for the procurement and delivery of the universal service commitment, and will be established by the autumn. Those currently unable to receive a service will be given priority.
The Government are also working to set up the Next Generation Fund to help pay for upgrading the UK telecoms infrastructure, which will help to incentivise the delivery of next generation broadband to the home or business premises in the final third of the UK that the market will not deliver to.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses have requested and been refused a Business Link health check. [291256]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The RDAs have no record of any business that has requested a Business Link health check having had their request refused for the whole period since such health checks began.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many Business Link employees attended the Beijing Olympics in July 2008 in an official capacity. [291259]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 16 September 2009]: No Business Link employee who was directly employed in the provision of the Business Link service, by RDAs and their Business Link Providers, travelled to Beijing to attend the Beijing Olympics in July 2008 in their capacity as a Business Link employee.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many Business Link employees carry out business health checks. [291260]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The number of Business Link employees who carry our health checks as part of their role is shown in the following table.
| Name of RDA | Number of Business Link employees who currently carry out business health checks |
Mr. Harper: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the budget for Business Links is for (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12. [285068]
Mr. McFadden: For the period 2007-08, an estimate of the budget for Business Link allocated by the regional development agencies was £190 million. No forward budget is agreed with the RDAs for this activity. Business Link services are funded from the Government’s single-pot to the regional development agencies to deliver agreed core services to businesses in each region. The exact budget for those contracted services is left for each RDA to determine based on what is appropriate for its region.
Mr. Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much (a) each regional development agency and (b) his Department allocated to Business Link in each of the last five years. [289830]
Ms Rosie Winterton: In 2005, responsibility for managing Business Link face-to-face services was transferred to the RDAs. The previous budget used to deliver Business Link services was added to the Department's contribution towards the RDA "Single-Pot". This allows the regions to draw down as much or as little funding as they see fit to deliver the service in their areas.
Over the last five years, the RDAs have allocated the following budgets to their Business Link providers:
| BL funding over period 2005-10 | |||||
| £ million | |||||
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 606W—continued
Mr. Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many business advisers have been employed by Business Link in each of the last 36 months. [289829]
Ms Rosie Winterton: In the context of the question posed, ‘business advisers’ have been defined as including face-to-face business (link) advisers delivering services under the Business Link brand; that may include functional/sector specialists but not those operating under other service brands e.g. MAS. Internal/telephone based support or partnership staff have not been included.
From 1 April, skills brokerage for Train to Gain was integrated with the Business Link service, accounting for the significant increase in Business Link adviser numbers this year.
Comprehensive national data can only be provided from April 2008 by which time all RDAs had re-contracted to the current network of Business Link providers. Some of the regional data for prior months was held by former Business Link providers and it would be disproportionate cost to collect this information.
| Month | Number of Business Link advisers |
Anne Main: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much lending has been guaranteed under the Working Capital Scheme. [260555]
Ms Rosie Winterton: £2 billion of guarantees have been provided to banks under the Working Capital Scheme to free up regulatory capital for new lending to UK companies. As a result of action by the Government and the regulatory authorities, leading to improvements in the capital position of the UK banking system since the introduction of the WCS, the Government have been able to allocate resource provision for the WCS to other measures to support businesses, including as announced at the Budget 2009 a trade credit insurance top up scheme and a possible new letters of credit scheme in the Export Credit Guarantee Department.
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many small businesses in England have received assistance from his Department in the last 12 months. [273299]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Business Link is the Department’s main channel of support businesses of all sizes. In the 12 months to end June 2009, advisers helped over 930,800 businesses, with over 76,000 receiving intensive one-to-one support. The businesslink.gov.uk website attracted around 11.2 million visitors in the same period.
Examples of other specific assistance received by small and medium sized enterprises from BIS and its predecessors include:
In 2008/09, UK Trade and Investment activities assisted 20,700 individual companies to exploit opportunities in overseas markets.
The Enterprise Finance Guarantee, which up to 21 August 2009 has offered loans totalling over £470 million to over 4,600 businesses.
The Technology Strategy Board has supported various collaborative R&D projects and knowledge transfer activities:
Nearly 1,000 SMEs have received grants for collaborative R&D projects worth over £25 million in the 12 month to June 2009.
Over 760 SMEs have received support for Knowledge Transfer Partnerships totalling over £18 million in the 12 months to July 2009.
In addition 57,000 are members of our Knowledge Transfer Networks of which a proportion are SMEs.
Skill support to SMEs through Train to Gain. Provisional information for 2008/09 shows that within the academic year 100,000 SMEs have had an employee start a Train to Gain course.
The annual reports for BERR and DIUS describe the other forms of business support provided more fully in 2008/09.
Business Link is the Department’s main channel of support businesses of all sizes. In the 12 months to end June 2009, advisers helped over 930,800 businesses, with over 76,000 receiving intensive one-to-one support. The businesslink.gov.uk website attracted around 11.2 million visitors in the same period.
Examples of other specific assistance received by small and medium sized enterprises from BIS and its predecessors include:
In 2008/09, UK Trade and Investment activities assisted 20,700 individual companies to exploit opportunities in overseas markets.
The Enterprise Finance Guarantee, which up to 21 August 2009 has offered loans totalling over £470 million to over 4,600 businesses.
The Technology Strategy Board has supported various collaborative R&D projects.
Nadine Dorries: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding his Department and its predecessors allocated for the development of small businesses in (a) Mid Bedfordshire constituency and (b) the East of England in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement. [280099]
Ian Lucas: East of England Development Agency (EEDA) funds a range of services to support businesses in the East of England.
Since 2007 EEDA has invested over £30 million annually on a range of services to support businesses from all sectors across the region. This includes the regional
Business Link service, specific business support schemes and business finance grants for eligible businesses.
The following information identifies funding for these services.
Note:
Not all of these schemes were in place 10 years ago, therefore funding will be provided as far back as possible. EEDA was not created until 1999; and has only been operating significant business support schemes since 2007.
From 1 April 2007 EEDA has provided £32 million of funding to Business Link East to deliver the service across the region. From 2008/09 Business Link has interacted with 108,391 businesses in the East of England of which 1,416 have been in mid Bedfordshire. Since October 2008 around 8,000 free ‘health checks’ have been delivered in the region.
For the period of 2005-08 EEDA has funded the Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) East to the value of £3.4 million and has awarded a further £3.3 million between 2008-11. Bedfordshire businesses, during the period November 2005-October 2008, received £163,680 worth of business support. 104 companies received a basic one-day review through the MAS-east programme. Of these, nineteen companies also received a full implementation programme resulting in 32 projects which generated gross value added of £613,852.00.
EEDA’s Take ITon campaign assists businesses to improve use of IT, focused on helping SMEs save cost through IT. Since December 2007 the regional programme has totalled 347 grants, investing £1,105,508.01 to leverage a total of £3,227,784.06. Mid Bedfordshire Take ITon has funded a total of 11 grants, investing £32,440 and leveraging in a total of £99,166.50.
£2.2 million has funded a regional response to redundancy programme which has supported companies across the region and in Mid Bedfordshire.
EEDA has operated a number of business finance schemes since 2003 such as Grant for Research and Development, Proof of Concept funds, Grants for Business Investment. The amounts funded to date for the former county of Bedfordshire are:
| £ | |
For the former county of Bedfordshire funding totalled £20,845,345 which has been matched against further investment of £134,067,981.
In May 2009 EEDA launched an Understanding Finance for Business Programme which provides coaching and mentoring to SMEs.
EEDA launched a £5 million Regional Loan Fund in May 2009, aimed at supporting innovative SMEs in early growth prior to attracting venture capital funding.
EEDA is also promoting Olympic opportunities to businesses through CompeteFor, a web based portal. So far 9612 businesses have registered in the region of those 573 are in Bedfordshire.
Nadine Dorries: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding his Department and its predecessors allocated to the development of information technology businesses in (a) Mid Bedfordshire constituency and (b) the East of England in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement. [280100]
Ian Lucas: East of England Development Agency funds a range of services to support businesses from all sectors across the region. This includes the regional Business Link service, specific business support schemes and business finance grants for eligible businesses.
Key examples of funding and support to IT businesses in the region, where possible, broken down by IT sector and location include:
Since December 2007 £76,561 has been provided through the Take1Ton campaign for businesses to receive support for enhanced ICT. Of this, £9,980 in Bedfordshire and £1,980 in mid-Beds.
Since January 2001 EEDA has provided £4,305,127 in Business finance grants in the East of England and of this, £508,050 in Bedfordshire.(1)
(1) Some of the above are grants to businesses under either the Grants for Business Investment (GBI) or Grant for Research and Development (GRaD) programmes. GBI, previously known as Selective Finance for Investment in England (SFIE), transferred to EEDA from the Small Business Service (SBS) in April 2002. GRaD transferred to EEDA from SBS in April 2005.
Greg Clark: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what support his Department is providing to UK companies which are developing low-carbon goods and services. [289850]
Mr. McFadden: In July the Government published the Low Carbon Industrial Strategy which outlined the first investments from the £405 million for low carbon industries and advanced green manufacturing announced at Budget 2009. The strategy announced up to £60 million to capitalise on Britain’s wave and tidal sector strengths, up to £15 million capital investment in order to establish a Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre, up to £10 million for the accelerated deployment of electric vehicle charging infrastructure, a £4 million expansion of the Manufacturing Advisory Service, up to £6 million to construct low carbon affordable homes and up to £120 million to support the development of a British based offshore wind industry. Copies of the strategy are available in the Libraries of the House.
Mr. George Osborne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses have received money from the Capital for Enterprise Scheme; and how much money has been provided in total under the scheme to date. [291223]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The Capital for Enterprise Fund (CFEF) provides a total commitment of £75 million, made up of £50 million in public funds and agreement in principle to an additional £25 million from the main banks (Lloyds, Barclays, HSBC and RBS).
As from 10 September 2009, CFEF has made 26 offers totalling almost £40 million to 26 businesses. Two of these deals have completed so far with a total value of £3 million.
Adam Afriyie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the criteria are for small and medium-sized enterprises to receive funding from the Capital for Enterprise Fund (CEF); when businesses were first able to apply for funding from the CEF; when the CEF made its first payment; what the (a) total and (b) average monetary value of payments from the CEF has been to date; how many businesses have received funding from the CEF; what steps his Department has taken to promote the CEF to small and medium-sized businesses; and what target time has been established for the CEF to determine applications. [291810]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Capital for Enterprise Fund (CfEF) makes investments of between £200,000 and £2 million of equity and mezzanine finance. The investment is aimed at releasing and sustaining the growth potential of businesses that are over-geared, under-capitalised or both. To apply, all applicants must have their principal place of business within the UK or be able to demonstrate why an investment will be of tangible benefit to the UK. Additionally, all applications must meet the EU definition of an SME.
CfEF was announced as part of the Real Help Now programme on 14 January and businesses were able to register their applications for the fund immediately through a dedicated registration service. Following an appointment process the contracted Fund Managers were able to start processing these in March.
As at 22 September five businesses had received investment from the CfEF totalling £6.15 million at an average of £ 1.23 million per deal. The first investment was completed on 31 July.
The Department has marketed the CfEF to businesses as part of the wider programme of support through Real Help, in particular through Business Link and using national and regional promotional activity which includes sources of communications used by the main business representative bodies to their members. The CfEF Fund Managers have also produced a promotional flyer which is distributed to businesses through their network of professional bodies.
As a commercial fund the investment process for CfEF involves a period of due diligence and negotiation, which involves the fund manager and potential investee company and often existing investors and lenders to the business. The length of time required to complete this can vary significantly in each case and there is no formal target time between an application and investment, although the managers are working to progress investments as quickly as possible.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent estimate his Department has made of the cost to UK businesses of the administrative burden of regulation. [290233]
Ian Lucas: In May 2005, the administrative cost of regulations was measured using the internationally recognised Standard Cost Model. The measurement exercise included 19 Government Departments, regulators and agencies. The burden was estimated at £13.2 billion annually. The Government have committed to reduce administrative burdens associated with complying with regulations by 25 per cent. net by May 2010. As at December 2008, an estimated £1.9 billion net annual savings had been delivered.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 611W—continued
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he has received representations from (a) the CBI, (b) British Chambers of Commerce and (c) other business organisations on the potential effects of the implementation of the Calman Commission proposals on business costs. [289812]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has not received any representations from the CBI, the British Chambers of Commerce or any other business organisations on the potential effects of the implementation of the Calman Commission proposals on business costs.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many customers of Companies House (a) were contacted for the purposes of and (b) responded to its customer satisfaction survey in each of the last four years. [289816]
Ian Lucas: The information is as follows:
(a) Prior to January 2008 Companies House issued paper customer surveys covering Companies House Direct, E-Filing, the Contact Centre and also a general survey (which was also available on the Companies House website). Approximately 25,000 were sent each year.
Since January 2008 the customer surveys have been completely electronic and the paper survey is no longer issued. Approximately 60,000 were sent out each year to our WebFiling, Software Filing, Companies House Direct and WebCHeck customers. A customer survey is also available to complete on our website and the Contact Centre survey is included as a link on every e-mail sent out by the Contact Centre.
(b) The number of Companies House customer survey responses are as follows. Unfortunately due to software changes there are no statistics available for the year 2005-06.
| Responses | |
Greg Clark: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills at what times of the day the Companies House WebCHeck website is available. [289941]
Ian Lucas: The Companies House WebCHeck service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many letters from hon. Members the Chief Executive of Companies House received in each of the last four years. [289815]
Ian Lucas: The number of letters received by the chief executive of Companies House from hon. Members in each of the last four years is as follows:
2005: 38 letters
2006: 55 letters
2007: 54 letters
2008: 60 letters.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many employees of Companies House were absent from work for (a) no, (b) one to five, (c) six to 10, (d) 11 to 15 and (e) more than 15 days in each of the last four years. [289923]
Ian Lucas: The total absence figures of employees of Companies House from work from 2006 to 2008 are listed as follows and have been calculated by adding individual employees absence for each year. The figures for 2005 are not available due to a systems problem.
| Number of employees | |||
| Number of days | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment he has made of levels of productivity in the engineering construction sector. [289920]
Ian Lucas: Mark Gibson, now chief executive of the Whitehall and Business Group is currently leading a review of productivity and skills in the engineering construction sector.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the monetary value of engineering construction contracts lost to UK companies as a result of (a) low productivity levels and (b) industrial action in the last five years. [289950]
Ian Lucas: Information relating to the securing of individual contracts in a particular sector, including engineering construction, is not collected by Government. The award of engineering construction contracts is a business matter for the parties concerned, and the various award criteria are commercial issues for the private sector clients involved.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009, Official Report, column 191W, on the Construction Clearing House, what steps the Construction Clearing House has taken to ensure that construction apprenticeship places which are at risk of redundancy are not lost; and if he will make a statement; [289778]
(2) how many times the Construction Clearing House Committee has met since its establishment; and who the members are of that committee. [289888]
Kevin Brennan: The service operated by Construction Skills provides a helpline offering advice and support for employers, apprentices and parents to help redundant apprentices find alternative employment and help support those whose job is at risk. Construction Skills also actively seek new employers for displaced apprentices to complete their Apprenticeship framework. This service is now available to all training providers delivering Apprenticeships in construction. Additional funding has recently been made available to Construction Skills to provide employers with a £1,000 grant to help with the costs of employing a displaced apprentice. These arrangements are in addition to the contractual requirement on all training providers to help apprentices find alternative employment if they lose their job. The National Apprenticeships Service (NAS) introduced new flexibilities earlier in the year to help ensure apprentices can continue in training to complete their Apprenticeship.
The clearing house arrangements are not directly overseen by a committee; they are managed as part of the operational responsibilities of Construction Skills and NAS.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009, Official Report, column 191W, on Construction Task Force, (1) if he will list the membership of the Construction Task Force, and on how many occasions the Construction Task Force has met since its inception; [290219]
(2) what recent steps the Construction Task Force has taken to ensure the security of apprenticeship places in the construction industry; and if he will make a statement. [290220]
Kevin Brennan: The Construction Apprenticeships Task Force membership comprised:
| Construction apprenticeships task force | |
| Member | |
Representatives from the Department, the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Homes and Communities Agency also attended by invitation. The Task Force met four times between November 2008 and April 2009. The group considered the impact of the
economic downturn and its effect on the Construction labour market and agreed actions on a number of issues affecting Apprenticeships in the industry. Key recommendations were on public sector procurement and support for displaced construction apprentices. On procurement we continue to work across Government and in the industry to implement the specific construction commitment set out in the pre-Budget report, 2008 and the task force provided structured input into this process. Progress includes commitments to create new apprenticeship places through the Department of Children’s Schools and Families’ Building Schools for the Future programme, from the Olympic Delivery Authority on the Olympic Park and Village site, and through the Homes and Communities Agency’s £5 billion annual investment budget. For displaced apprentices the Construction Matching Service has sought new jobs for apprentices, and offered advice and support for employers, apprentices and parents through a national helpline. The Task Force also looked at the role of trade unions and medium-to-long term strategies for expanding apprenticeships in the sector, these wider issues will be taken forward through the Cross-Industry Construction Apprenticeship Task Force which advises Government on Apprenticeship issues affecting the sector.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with (a) the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families and (b) representatives of the engineering construction industry on increasing the number of young people pursuing careers in that sector. [289924]
Ian Lucas: Like other engineering-related sectors, the engineering construction industry offers attractive career opportunities, but shares challenges in attracting employees for the future. In this regard, there are ongoing discussions at ministerial, and official levels on issues that directly impact on engineering construction. A programme of actions is being taken forward by Government, in conjunction with the sector skills councils and the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board, to address these matters. The Diploma in Construction and the Built Environment, and the Diploma in Engineering, were launched in September 2008, with the aim of introducing young people to the world of working in these industries. This Government are also committed to a significant growth in apprenticeships. That is why funding for apprentices has been increased by almost a quarter since 2007/08 to over £1 billion in 2009/10.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment he has made of trends in industrial action in relation to the engineering construction sector. [289921]
Ian Lucas: The Department has not undertaken an assessment of trends in industrial action in the engineering construction sector.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what timetable he has set for completion of his Department’s review of productivity and skills in the engineering construction sector. [289922]
Ian Lucas: The review is expected to be completed around autumn this year.
Mr. Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether the £5 million loan to Corus announced on 25 June 2009 has been (a) partially or (b) fully drawn down by Corus; and whether any assurances relating to jobs in the UK have been received in return. [289832]
Mr. McFadden: On 25 June, my noble Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills offered a £5 million training package to Corus. The offer was also discussed when the Prime Minister met with Kirby Adams, Chief Executive Officer of Corus on 16 July.
At present officials in BIS and the Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) are working with Corus to take forward the offer of assistance which will contribute to training the workforce, retain capacity in the UK and help the company through the downturn and to recover more strongly as economic conditions improve.
The training package will benefit Corus operations in the regions covered by Yorkshire Forward and ONE North East RDAs and will support apprenticeship and graduate training programmes and a range of training packages focussed on Corus' shop floor workers.
Corus have provided assurances relating to the future of 3,000 employees and 1,000 contractors in the Yorkshire and Humber region and in excess of 1,200 employees and 500 contractors within the Tees Valley up to the end of 2010. It is planned that a significant proportion of the training support funding will be drawn down before the end of December 2009.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 616W—continued
Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department spent on newspaper advertising carried in each newspaper in the most recent year for which figures are available. [289515]
Mr. McFadden: The former Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) spent £417,906 on press advertising via the Central Office of Information in 2008-09 as follows:
| £ | |
In addition central financial records indicate that BERR spent £90,235 in 2008-09 through an advertising agency on advertising for external recruitment.
The former Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) spent £208,137 on press advertising via the Central Office of Information in 2008-09 as below:
| £ | |
A breakdown of expenditure on newspaper advertising by title could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department has spent on advertising arising from its re-branding following machinery of Government changes in June 2009. [290081]
Mr. McFadden: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has not done any advertising of the Department due to machinery of government changes.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills in which buildings in central London each of his Department’s units is located. [290264]
Ian Lucas: This Department has directorates based in the following buildings in central London:
1 Victoria Street, London SW1H OET
Kingsgate House, 66-74 Victoria Street, London SW1E 6SW
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many staff have (a) been dismissed and (b) had their contract terminated by his Department and its predecessors in each of the last five years; what the reason was in each case; and what the severance costs in relation to (i) dismissal and (ii) contract termination were in each such year. [290563]
Mr. McFadden:
Staff may be dismissed for poor performance, poor attendance, gross misconduct, repeated
misconduct and the contract of employment terminated. Information for the Department and its predecessors in relation to dismissals is set out in the following table. Totals of less than five are suppressed on grounds of confidentiality.
| Number of staff dismissed | |
Staff may also be dismissed in law when a fixed term contract terminates at the end of the contract period and is not renewed. These are not included.
Information about the costs of terminating contracts is not held in the format requested and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Where the dismissal relates to either gross misconduct or repeated misconduct no severance cost payments are payable.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent estimate his Department has made of the annual cost to the economy arising from UK implementation of EU legislation. [290088]
Mr. McFadden: It is very difficult to provide precise figures for the annual cost to the economy arising from UK implementation of legislation that stems from the European Union.
The administrative burdens measurement exercise carried out by the Government in 2006 put the proportion of administrative burdens stemming from the EU at approximately 1/3 of the annual total of 13.2 billion pounds.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many (a) mobile telephones, (b) Blackberrys and (c) laptop computers were issued to staff of his Department and its predecessors in each of the last five years; and how many of these were issued to (i) new staff and (ii) existing staff following the (A) loss or (B) theft of a previous device. [290558]
Mr. McFadden: The Department holds information only on the total number of Blackberry and laptop computers used by BIS staff during the requested period and the mobile telephone services held by ex BERR staff in 2008. The information available is presented in the following table.
| Laptops in use | Laptops lost/stolen | Blackberry's in use | Blackberry's lost/stolen | Mobiles in use | Mobiles lost/stolen | |
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what flexi-time arrangements were available to staff of his Department and its predecessors in each of the last five years; and how many staff participated in such arrangements in each such year. [290565]
1. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills was created on 5 June, with the merger of BERR and DIUS.
2. Both staff on former BERR and DIUS terms and conditions have flexible working policies which enable staff to vary their conditioned hours, and support a work-life balance. The different ways to work flexibly include flexi-time, part-time, also compressed hours, term-times and home working. In addition staff can job share and have access to an internal job share register and the wider Civil Service Job Share Website.
3. The former Departments do not keep a central record of how many staff participate in such arrangements each year; flexible working is dealt with locally by line managers in accordance with the departmental policies. In the 2008 Staff Surveys, of the staff who responded to the survey 68 per cent. of former BERR and 66 per cent. of former DIUS staff said they worked flexibly.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what IT systems have been in development for use within his Department in the last five years; what the reason for the development of each system was; how much has been spent on the development of each system; and which systems have been subsequently (i) implemented, (ii) terminated prior to implementation and (iii) terminated following implementation. [290559]
Mr. McFadden: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills IT infrastructure systems are provided via long standing agreements with Fujitsu Services and cover desktop services, web infrastructure services and in some cases other business applications, which are charged for as part of the overall, bundled, service charge.
In the last five years the following systems have, however, been developed from scratch and the details requested are provided:
Reason for development: Provision of secure remote access services via Blackberries and mobile laptops
Development costs: £4.9 million
Reason for development: Provision of a correspondence handling system
Development cost: £1.9 million
Reason for development: Upgrade to the Department's existing electronic document management system, (itself over five years old)
Development cost: £104,000
Reason for development: Provision of a range of electronic export control services
Development cost: £2.6 million
In all cases all systems were fully implemented and remain fully operational.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many workplace accidents have been reported in his Department in the last five months; and what the causes of each accident were. [290092]
Mr. McFadden: Since its inception on 8 June, there have been eight workplace accidents recorded across the BIS estate related to departmental employees or contractors. The cause of each accident, all of which were relatively minor, was as follows:
1. Finger caught by spring loaded bin lid.
2. Bump on head following fall caused by an ongoing medical condition.
3. Bump on nose caused by front cover of a paper towel dispenser falling open.
4. Fall following standing on an office chair (two instances).
5. Contractor cut finger while replacing broken light fitting.
6. Injured back while moving a cabinet.
7. Struck knee while lifting an item of computer equipment into trolley bag.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of members of his Department are recorded as having a second language. [290458]
Mr. McFadden: This information is not held centrally and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, based on business demand, there are 19 civil servants in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills currently receiving language training from our preferred supplier.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many members of staff in his Department have been required to move office in changes arising from the most recent departmental reorganisation; and how many of these had been required to move office in changes arising from the previous reorganisation. [290090]
Mr. McFadden:
Since the creation of BIS we have moved Ministers and their private office staff, plus Press Office staff. In total, we have moved 46 staff. We
have also moved 170 policy officials within our two London buildings, although these were simply people moves rather than structural changes.
Moving ex DIUS staff into 1 Victoria Street was already planned before the merger between DIUS and BERR to create BIS. None of these moves were required at the previous MOG, when DECC was created and ex BERR staff moved from 1 Victoria Street to 3 Whitehall Place.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of staff in his Department joined his Department or its predecessors after working in the private sector. [290095]
Mr. McFadden: We do not record this information nor hold it centrally. It could only be made available at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many members of his Department are suspended from their duties; and for what reasons. [290097]
Mr. McFadden: We are unable to supply details of suspensions as authority to suspend staff is delegated to line managers throughout the Department and a central record is not maintained.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the average length of employment of staff of his Department and its predecessors at each Civil Service payband. [290561]
Mr. McFadden: The average length of employment of ex-DIUS staff is shown in the following table as at 31 March.
| Pay band | Years |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 621W—continued
The average length of employment of ex-BERR staff is shown in the following table as at 31 March.
| Pay band | Years |
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the answer of 26 November 2008, Official Report, column 1935W, on departmental marketing, how many staff in his Department have responsibility for branding activity; and what the cost of employing such staff was in 2008-09. [290215]
Mr. McFadden: The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) had one member of staff responsible for managing the Department’s brand. This included the publication and dissemination of the brand guidelines and advising on their application. It is estimated that 25 per cent. of this person’s time was spent on branding-related activities. Based on the average pay costs for a member of staff at this grade, this represents a staff cost of approximately £11,653 in 2008/09.
The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) had one member of staff responsible for managing the Department’s brand. It is estimated that 25 per cent. of this person’s time was spent on branding-related activities. The total staff cost on branding was approximately £6,300 in 2008/09.
Greg Clark: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether (a) the Secretary of State, (b) Ministers in his Department and (c) officials have met representatives of (i) Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd, (ii) Eastern Petroleum Corporation Ltd, (iii) African Minerals Ltd, (iv) Landis+Gyr and (v) Energy Enterprises Ltd in the last three years. [289937]
Ian Lucas: Officials from UK Trade and Investment have met with representatives from Landis & Gyr in the last three years. Neither Ministers nor officials have met with Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd., Eastern Petroleum Corporation Ltd., African Minerals Ltd. or Energy Enterprises Ltd.
Greg Clark: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what stocktake meetings his Department has had with the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit in the last 12 months. [289942]
Mr. McFadden: The Prime Minister’s delivery unit is in constant contact with Departments as part of its process of taking stock of delivery. It reports regularly to the PM, the Treasury and the Departments concerned.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department spent on hire vehicles in each of the last five financial years. [291706]
Mr. McFadden: The Department spent the following on hire vehicles (including leasing) in the last five financial years:
| £ | |
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many properties owned by the Department and its predecessors were liable for payment of (a) business rates and (b) empty property rates in each of the last five years; and what the bill for each was in each such year. [290566]
Mr. McFadden: This Department owns only one building, situated in Edinburgh, which is fully occupied. This is a warehouse facility that is currently let to the British Geological Survey, part of the Natural Environment Research Council, and they are liable for the business rates bill. The building is let to them on a 10 year term which began in August 2005.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the answer of 15 September 2008, Official Report, column 2111W, on departmental official hospitality, how much his Department spent on hospitality and entertainment in 2008-09. [290172]
Mr. McFadden: The Department spent £154,444 on hospitality and £1,078,530 on entertainment in 2008-09.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many staff took paternity leave from his Department and its predecessors in each of the last five years; and what the average length of such leave has been. [290564]
1. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills was created on 5 June 2009, with the merger of BERR and DIUS.
2. The former Departments did not keep a central record of how many staff took paternity leave. Paternity leave is dealt with locally by line managers in accordance with the departmental policies. The information can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
3. Paid paternity leave for former BERR staff is two weeks and for former DIUS staff is three weeks.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what employee reward schemes are offered to staff of his Department and its predecessors; what the purpose of each scheme is; how many staff participate in each scheme; and what the cost of operating each scheme was in each of the last five years. [290567]
Mr. McFadden: You will be aware that the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has only recently been created (6 June 2009) by merging the former Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) with the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS). BIS is still in the early stages of setting up its own systems and policies so I have provided you with the information you have requested based on the rewards paid by the former BERR and DIUS.
Ex-BERR and ex-DIUS has two common bonuses, while ex-BERR has three. Both Departments awards:
1. Non-consolidated performance pay and non-pay reward to recognise performance in particularly demanding tasks or situations. Staff in receipt of a special bonus may also receive an annual performance award. This award is open to all staff.
2. Annual Performance Awards paid to Highly Successful performance as part of the annual pay award.
3. In addition, BERR also awards Team Triumphs—Team Triumphs is an awards ceremony designed to recognise the achievements of teams in the Department. Any team can be nominated providing it has at least two members. Cost of this scheme comes out of non-consolidated performance pay and non-pay rewards pot.
The following tables show the number of staff receiving the awards, and the cost of the scheme.
| Financial year( 1) | Non-consolidated performance pay( 2) (includes non-pay reward and Team Triumph) | Performance awards | ||
| Number of staff receiving | Total value (£) | Number of staff receiving | Total value( 3) (£) | |
| (1 )Financial year running from 1 April to 31 March. (2) The non-consolidated performance pay and performance awards for non-SCS staff are paid on a non-consolidated, non-pensionable basis and do not increase the Department's paybill costs each year. For the SCS the Senior Salaries Review Body determines the level of expenditure to cover bonuses. (3) The total figure includes SCS staffs. (4) Includes staff who were transferred from DTI to DIUS as part of the June 2007 machinery of government changes as these staff received a DTI/BERR pay award in 2007. Does not include those staff transferred into BERR from Cabinet Office and the Department for Communities and Local Government as part of the June 2007 machinery of government changes as these staff received Cabinet Office and DCLG pay awards respectively in 2007. Note: In 2007-08 the total value of bonuses paid was approximately 1.5 per cent. of the total Department's paybill. | ||||
| Table for DIUS | ||||
| Financial year | Non-consolidated performance pay | Performance awards | ||
| Number of staff receiving | Total value (£) | Number of staff receiving | Total value (£) | |
| (1) The performance awards for 2007-08 was paid by both former Departments. | ||||
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what data his Department by his Department and its predecessor holds on the level of diversity in the recruitment of employees in each of the last three years. [290514]
Mr. McFadden: The Department invites each candidate in individual recruitment exercises to complete a diversity monitoring questionnaire. The information from questionnaires is collated and monitored in order to assess the effectiveness of our advertising and recruitment processes and the workforce profile.
In line with the requirements in the public sector Employment Duties, the Department publishes annual reports covering our equality and diversity reporting responsibilities, including diversity data on applicants for employment. The annual reports for 2008 and 2009 are not yet available following machinery of Government changes and extracting the specified data alone at this stage would incur disproportionate cost.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of his Department’s waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289660]
Mr. McFadden: Since the inception of BIS on 8 June, the following amounts of waste have been recycled by this Department:
June—40,700 Kg (63.9 per cent. of total)
July—42,342 Kg (62.1 per cent. of total)
August—33,929 Kg (64.3 per cent. of total)
I would also refer the hon. Member to the previously published Sustainable Development in Government (SDiG) reports in which central Government Departments publicly reported on the data requested. The most recent report can be found at:
http://www.sd-commission.org.uk/sdiu2008/
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether there have been any changes to the furnishings in offices of Ministers in his Department following the recent departmental reorganisation. [290226]
Mr. McFadden: There have been no changes to the furnishings in offices occupied by Ministers in this Department following the recent departmental reorganisation. New Ministers have taken the furniture of departing Ministers.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289748]
Mr. McFadden: In the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), I am the Minister responsible for overseeing the delivery of value for money. In addition, Lord Davies has responsibility for overseeing public service reform.
BIS is committed to ensuring that public services delivered to citizens and business are as efficient and effective as possible. There are specific staff leading a range of work on value for money, public service reform and public sector reform. They co-ordinate work across the Department and engage with partners and other Government Departments to drive change.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of assimilating Ministerial responsibility for skills into his Department. [290223]
Mr. McFadden: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Solihull (Lorely Burt) on 3 July 2009, Official Report, column 436W.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 626W—continued
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of staff in his Department have worked on attachment to the private sector. [290093]
Mr. McFadden: We do not record this information nor hold it centrally. It could only be made available at disproportionate cost.
John Mason: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many external training courses were attended by staff of his Department and its predecessor in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of each course. [289677]
Mr. McFadden: Training budgets are delegated to line managers to determine locally what external training will be funded. This information is not held centrally and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what private sector training courses for Civil Service officials are available to staff in his Department with funding provided by his Department. [290096]
Mr. McFadden: Training budgets are delegated to line managers to determine locally what private sector training is suitable and will be funded. This information is not held centrally and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department and its predecessors spent on tickets for (a) air and (b) rail travel for (i) Ministers, (ii) special advisers and (iii) civil servants in his Department which were not used in each of the last three years. [280008]
Mr. McFadden: In BIS the criteria for booking travel should be value for money, staff travelling on official business must take advantage of any cheap facilities which maybe available including restricted non refundable tickets wherever practical.
The Department does not separately record details of unused tickets by Ministers, special advisers and civil servants.
For the period April 2008 to March 2009 the total amount of tickets booked through our travel booking agents and refunded was:
| £ | |
Details for previous years are not centrally recorded due to the number of Government changes to the Department to provide this information would entail disproportionate cost.
All expenditure is incurred in accordance with the principles of Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.
John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many journeys and at what cost the Secretary of State has made in a ministerial capacity by (a) airplane, (b) train, (c) helicopter and (d) car since October 2008; what class of travel was used for each airplane and train journey; and on what dates such journeys took place. [291678]
Mr. McFadden: The Cabinet Office has published a list of all overseas visits undertaken by Ministers costing £500 or more during the period 1 April 2008 to 31 March 2009. The list provides details of the date, destination and purpose of all such visits and the cost of Ministers’ travel and accommodation where appropriate. Copies of the list have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
My right hon. and noble Friend the Secretary of State for Transport has published on 16 July 2009, Official Report, column 80WS, the number of and cost to Departments of the provision of allocated cars and drivers by the Government Car and Despatch Agency to Ministers during 2008-09.
All ministerial travel is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code.
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on whether funding allocated to his Department is to be allocated to the Department for Communities and Local Government to help implement the housing policies announced in the Draft Legislative programme for 2009-10. [290484]
Mr. McFadden: My noble Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills discussed the Department's £50 million contribution to the housing policies announced in the Draft Legislative programme with the chief secretary to the Treasury, as part of the process of publishing “Building Britain's Future.”
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the answer of 1 May 2008, Official Report, column 574W, on the East of England Development Agency: Fishburn Hedges, what payments the East of England Development Agency has made to Fishburn Hedges since May 2008; and for what services each such payment was made. [289779]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Since May 2008, Fishburn Hedges have provided support to EEDA with specific public affairs services. This support includes legislative and policy updates, a parliamentary monitoring service, information and briefings, support on political visits and events, and parliamentary procedures. EEDA does not have sufficient capacity in house to manage all these areas of expertise.
| Date | Total payment( 1) | Service |
| (1 )These figures are inclusive of VAT. | ||
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 10 June 2009, Official Report, column 924W, on the East of England Development Agency: public relations, and with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Tunbridge Wells of 1 May 2008, Official Report, columns 574W, on the East of England Development Agency: Fishburn Hedges, for what reason the payments made to Fishburn Hedges are not classified as payments for external advice on public relations. [289781]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The previous question asked how much EEDA has spent on ‘retaining external advice on public relations’.
By ‘retaining external advice on public relations’ EEDA interprets this as where a retainer contract is in place, with a monthly fee paid to an agency for public relations services. EEDA defines 'public relations services' as supporting EEDA's corporate communications. This is a function we manage in-house with a team of professionals. EEDA does not therefore 'retain' any agency to provide 'external advice on public relations’.
EEDA uses public relations agencies for specific projects where additional capacity is required.
Fishburn Hedges is a public affairs agency and EEDA uses them on a retainer basis to provide specific public affairs support services. This includes legislative and policy updates, a parliamentary monitoring service,
information and briefings, support on political visits and events and support on parliamentary procedures. EEDA does not have sufficient capacity in house to provide all these areas of expertise.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will take steps to reduce the administrative burden upon companies imposed by compliance with the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive; and if he will make a statement. [289404]
Ian Lucas: I am currently considering amendments to the waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) regulations with a view to reducing the administrative burdens on business. The Department issued a consultation paper in December 2008, outlining proposals to streamline the data reporting requirements, approval process for prospective producer compliance schemes and the introduction of a simplified system for recording evidence of the levels of WEEE collected and the recycling and recovery targets achieved.
I am hoping to introduce the amending regulations before Parliament later in the autumn with the new systems coming into effect from 1 January 2010.
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many times his Department and its predecessors have been taken to an employment tribunal in each of the last five years; what the reason cited in each case was; and in how many cases the tribunal found in favour of the (a) the employee and (b) the Department. [290562]
Mr. McFadden: The Department and its predecessors have defended 28 claims for the financial years 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09, some of which were for multiple reasons.
Age discrimination
Breach of contract
Constructive dismissal
Disability discrimination
Equal pay
Gender
Race discrimination
Unfair dismissal
Unfair selection for redundancy.
Two claims are still outstanding
14 claims were withdrawn
Eight claims were found in favour of the Department
Four claims were upheld by the tribunal.
Information for 2005-06 and 2006-07 financial years could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Further details on the above cases are suppressed on grounds of confidentiality.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent estimate his Department has made of the annual regulatory cost to the economy arising from UK membership of the EU. [290089]
Ian Lucas: It is very difficult to provide precise figures for the annual regulatory cost to the economy arising from UK membership of the European Union.
The administrative burdens measurement exercise carried out by the Government in 2006 put the proportion of administrative burdens stemming from the EU at approximately one third of the annual total of £13.2 billion.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the debt owed to the Export Credits Guarantee Department by the Maldives was (a) in each of the last five years and (b) on the most recent date for which information is available; whether he plans to write off outstanding debt owed by the Maldives; what recent representations he has received on this matter; and if he will make a statement. [289609]
Ian Lucas: There are no outstanding debts to ECGD from the Malvides, and ECGD has not written off any Maldives debt.
I have not received any recent representations on this issue.
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what programmes to support exporters his Department has announced in the last year; and what further options to support exporters his Department is considering. [292122]
Ian Lucas: UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) is the Government organisation that helps UK-based companies to succeed in an increasingly global economy and maximise their international success.
UKTI’s trade development services for exporters aim to help develop their international trade potential and provide access to international markets. Further details on these services can be found on UKTI’s website at:
www.uktradeinvest.gov.uk
Specific examples of the help made available by UKTI in the last 12 months include the 12 March 2009 announcement of the “Gateway to Global Growth” programme to provide specialist, tailored advice and support for British companies to help them improve and extend their exporting experience, and the 2009 Budget announcement of £10 million of the Strategic Investment Fund being channelled into UKTI, to be spent on events to promote UK sector expertise both in the UK and abroad. The funds are available to help UK businesses better showcase their strengths to overseas customers and markets and form part of the Government's New Industry New Jobs strategy.
A raft of wider Government assistance for UK business has been made available through BIS in various initiatives over the past year and details can be found at:
www.businesslink.gov.uk
My noble Friend the Secretary of State for BIS announced the creation of the Advisory Panel on New Industry, New Jobs, Universities and Skills on 31 July. Looking forward, this panel will help generate ideas across the whole of the Government’s New Industry, New Jobs agenda, challenging conventional policy thinking in these areas.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 631W—continued
Peter Luff: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to assist Sheffield Forgemasters to invest in a new press for ultra-heavy forgings; when he expects the decision to invest to be announced; and if he will make a statement. [289347]
Ian Lucas: The Government have received an application for investment by Sheffield Forgemasters International Limited, for the development of a production facility for ultra heavy forgings. This is being considered under the Industrial Development Act. As yet no decision has been taken.
Adam Afriyie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many of the 10,000 additional places on science, technology, engineering and mathematics courses announced by his Department on 20 July 2009 will be taken up at each higher education institution at the start of the academic year 2009-10. [291632]
Mr. Lammy: On 23 July we announced that student support would be made available for 10,000 additional places on science, technology, engineering and mathematics courses.
The 10,000 places were allocated to institutions by HEFCE according to their share of full-time undergraduates that entered in 2007-08 to priority subjects identified by Government. Where institutions indicated to HEFCE that they were unable to take up their share of places they were redistributed pro-rata across the sector.
More details on the final allocation of the 10,000 additional places are available on the HEFCE website at the following link:
http://www.hefce.ac.uk/pubs/circlets/2009/c117_09/
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent steps the Government has taken to provide financial assistance to those entering further education. [291296]
Kevin Brennan
[holding answer 16 September 2009]: There is a range of financial assistance to learners entering further education. Learners on priority provision,
as well as those in receipt of income-related benefits, are not required to pay a fee for learning.
Adult learners (aged 19 plus) can apply for the Adult Learning Grant which pays up to £30 per week to those on low incomes undertaking full-time learning for their first full Level 2 or first full Level 3 qualification. Education maintenance allowance (EMA) of up to £30 per week is available to eligible l6-19 year olds participating in learning that meets the EMA eligibility criteria.
Colleges are allocated discretionary funding to help students aged 20 and over meet childcare costs. Learners under the age of 20 can apply for help with childcare costs through Care to Learn. Discretionary Learner Support Funds are also available for learners over the age of 16 experiencing financial hardship.
Learners can also apply for loans. Since July 2009, students have been able to apply for Professional and Career Development Loans (P and CDLs). These build on the successful Career Development Loans programme and offer more generous terms for students with loans up to £10,000 and lower interest rates.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much Government funding was made available for further education in the academic year 2008-09. [291297]
Kevin Brennan [holding answer 16 September 2009 ]: Expenditure by the former Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) on adult further education (FE) and skills for 2008-09 was £4.852 billion. This is based on expected outturn data as reported in the 2009 departmental report (July 2009).
The majority of funding is routed through the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) and supports adult participation through the Adult Learner Responsive route, Employer Responsive route (Train to Gain and Apprenticeships), and Adult Safeguarded Learning.
Some of the resource expended by DIUS supported the wider FE sector including the pre 19 age group, in the role which DIUS had as sponsor of the FE service.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what support his Department has provided to the haulage industry during the economic downturn. [291682]
Mr. McFadden: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills does not provide any specific support for the haulage sector. However, we have taken steps to help improve cash flow, to increase the availability of the credit businesses need, and to encourage investment so that businesses come through the recession ready to grow.
In particular, we obtained bank lending commitments from RBS and Lloyds to lend £27 billion additional lending to businesses this year. This includes lending guaranteed under the Working Capital Scheme.
In addition, we introduced a trade credit insurance top-up scheme which provides protections for firms suffering a reduction in cover.
We have also taken steps to assist small businesses to overcome short-term cash-flow problems—for example the enterprise finance guarantee and also measures to ensure prompt payment by both public and private sectors.
In October 2008, Business Link introduced a health check service from which 2,394 businesses in the transport, storage and communications sector have benefited.
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many additional student number places funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England there will be (a) in total and (b) for full-time, first year undergraduates in 2010-11. [291617]
Mr. Lammy: In his letter of 6 May the then Secretary of State informed HEFCE that up to 10,000 additional student numbers (ASN) could be awarded in 2010-11, with that figure to be finally confirmed in the next annual grant letter. At this stage in the cycle of negotiations with institutions it is not possible to determine the breakdown of those places.
Matthew Taylor: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) what proportion of university students who started their course in each year since 1997 had parents in the (a) A, (b) B, (c) C1, (d) C2, (e) D and (f) E social grouping; [292127]
(2) what proportion of students from Cornwall who started a higher education course in each year since 1997 had parents in the (a) A, (b) B, (c) C1, (d) C2, (e) D and (f) E social grouping. [292128]
Mr. Lammy: The latest information on socio-economic classification from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) is shown in the table. Parental socio-economic classification information is self-reported by entrants aged under 21, therefore figures are restricted to this group of entrants. This information should be regarded with caution due to the high proportion of students who fail to report their parents’ occupations, or who provide incomplete or imprecise information. Figures prior to 2002/03 are not comparable due to the change from social class to socio-economic classification.
Figures for the 2008/09 academic year will be available in January 2010.
| Full-time undergraduate entrants by local authority and socio-economic classification, UK higher education institutions( 1) , academic years 2002/03 to 2007/08 | ||||||
| Academic year | Local authority | Higher managerial and professional occupations | Lower managerial and professional occupations | Intermediate occupations | Small employers and own account workers | Lower supervisory and technical occupations |
| Academic year | Local authority | Semi-routine occupations | Routine occupations | Never worked and long-term unemployed( 2) | Missing/not classified | Total |
| (1 )Excludes the Open university due to inconsistencies in their coding of entrants across the time series. (2 )Information is not comprehensively collected on the ‘never worked and long-term unemployed’ category for students: Students who fit this group are usually classed as having missing information. (3 )Covers students whose socio-economic classification was missing or not classified: not classified includes occupations which were inadequately described, not classifiable or unstated. (4 )Covers entrants of all domiciles. Note: Figures are based on a HESA standard registration population. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). | ||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 636W—continued
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what percentage of state school leavers entered Russell Group universities in 2008. [290373]
Mr. Lammy: It is estimated that 6 per cent. of young people who were in English maintained schools and aged 15 at the start of academic year 2002/03, progressed to HE at a Russell group institution by the age of 19 (in 2006/07). Figures for 2007/08 will be available in 2010.
This figure has been calculated using matched data from the National Pupil Database, the Higher Education Statistics Agency student record and the Learning and Skills Council individualised learner record.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of university applicants who fail to secure a place for entry who will be unemployed and claiming benefits in 2009. [290482]
Mr. Lammy: As of 27 August, one week after A-level results day, UCAS figures show that of those who applied for a university course this year, 151,280 UK domiciled students had not yet secured a place, though many more students will secure places before provisional acceptance figures are published on 21 October. Of these, 39,347 had a non-clearing outcome pending, 105,967 were eligible to enter clearing and 5,966 had withdrawn from the scheme completely.
For those who do not secure a place at university through the UCAS main scheme or in clearing there are several options available. For example, this year we expect there to be 250,000 young people starting an apprenticeship. We have recently announced an extra 47,000 youth jobs supported by the Future Jobs Fund for young people who are unable to find work or training within a year.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many young people entered (a) further and (b) higher education in the last 12 months. [291295]
Kevin Brennan [holding answer 16 September 2009]: Information on the number of young people participating in further education is given in a statistical first release, the last version being published on 25 June 2009:
http://www. thedataservice.org.uk/statistics/sfriun09
In 2007-08, the latest year for which full-year figures are available, 1,055,600 learners aged under 19 participated in further education (excluding school sixth forms). Provisional figures for the 2008-09 academic year will be available in October 2009. In 2007-08, the latest year for which figures are available, 301,055 students aged under 21 entered English Higher Education Institutions. Figures for the 2008-09 academic year will be available in January 2010.
1. Source: FE, WBL, UFI and ACL ILR data—coverage: England.
2. This figure has been rounded to the nearest hundred.
3. This figure is based on age as at 31 August of the academic year. The common definition used for “young people” in further education is Under 19.
4. This figure includes participation in FE (General Further Education Colleges including Tertiary, Sixth Form Colleges, Special College—Agricultural and Horticultural Colleges and Art and Design Colleges, Specialist Colleges and External Institutions), UFI, ACL and Work-based Learning. It includes a small element
of FE provision delivered in HE organisations where the organisations have submitted ILR data. Data regarding school sixth forms is not included.
5. This figure is a count of the number of learners that participated at any point during the year. Learners undertaking more than one course will appear only once for each data collection. However, learners that are included in different data collections (e.g. participating in FE and undertaking an apprenticeship) will be counted more than once. Information on the number of learners entering/starting a course in published for apprenticeships but not FE provision.
1. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA).
2. This figure is taken from the HESA student record which is collected annually, is based on a HESA standard registration population and has been rounded to the nearest five.
3. This figure covers students from all domiciles entering both full-time and part-time courses of all levels. This figure refers to students starting the first year of their course in the 2007-08 academic year and is based on age as at 31 August of the academic year. The common definition used for “young people” in higher education is Under 21.
Matthew Taylor: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many and what percentage of students entering higher education for (a) full time and (b) part time first degrees have been from Cornwall in each year since 1997. [291715]
Mr. Lammy: The latest information from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) is shown in the table. Figures for the 2008-09 academic year will be available in January 2010.
| All first degree entrants( 1) and first degree entrants from Cornwall local authority( 2) by mode of study UK higher education institutions( 3) , academic years 1997-98 to 2007-08 | ||||||
| All entrants | O f which : from Cornwall | |||||
| Academic year | Full-time | Part-time | Full-time | Part-time | Percentage full-time from Cornwall | Percentage part-time from Cornwall |
| (1) Figures for all entrants covers students of all domiciles. (2) Local authority is defined by valid home postcodes. (3) Excludes the Open University due to inconsistencies in their coding of entrants across the time series. Notes: 1. Figures are based on a snapshot basis as at 1 December and have been rounded to the nearest five. 2. Percentages are based on un-rounded figures. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). | ||||||
Matthew Taylor: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what percentage of 18 to 21 year-olds from Cornwall started a university course in each year since 1997. [292126]
Mr. Lammy: The Department does not hold information on the number of 18 to 21-year-olds resident in Cornwall, so cannot calculate the proportion who enter HE. The number of 18 to 21-year-old entrants from Cornwall has been provided as an alternative. Figures for the 2008/09 academic year will be available in January 2010.
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what effect (a) the freeze in maintenance loans and grants, (b) the abolition of the guaranteed maximum financial support for new students previously in receipt of the educational maintenance allowance, (c) the reduction in the student loan repayment holiday from five years to two years and (d) the reduction in support for students on initial teacher training courses will have on expenditure on student support in 2010-11; what proportion of originally planned expenditure will be saved in each case; and if he will make a statement. [291618]
Mr. Lammy: This Government remain committed to ensuring that financial support should enable students to benefit from higher education, particularly for those who most need help to study, while at the same time being affordable overall.
Regulations for the academic year 2010-11 were laid on 1 July setting out the entitlements for students. Initial estimates indicate that the changes in the regulations, taken together, will reduce expenditure by some £60 million in grants and £130 million in loans(1 )in financial year 2010-11 compared to previous estimates.
(1) Loans expenditure expressed in resource terms. These costs are made up of the interest rate subsidy of loans together with the costs that are never repaid, for example, loans that are written off after 25 years or death of the borrower.
In the current economic climate, we believe these tough decisions are in the interests of students, universities and taxpayers alike. The measures we have taken will help ensure the student support system is affordable and sustainable in the longer term but without damaging access to higher education.
Mike Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people aged (a) 21 years and under and (b) over 21 years old in each socio-economic group resident in (i) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (ii) Dacorum and (iii) Hertfordshire attended university in each of the last five years. [289418]
Mr. Lammy: The latest information from the Higher Education Statistics Agency is shown in the tables. Figures for 2008/09 will be available in January 2010.
| Table 1: Full-time undergraduate enrolments( 1) from Hemel Hempstead parliamentary constituency by age and socio-economic classification( 2 ) UK higher education institutions academic years 2003/04 to 2007/08 | ||||||||||
| 2003/04 | 2004/05 | 2005/06 | 2006/07 | 2007/08 | ||||||
| Socio-economic classification | 21 and under | Over 21 | 21 and under | Over 21 | 21 and under | Over 21 | 21 and under | Over 21 | 21 and under | Over 21 |
| (1) The table does not include enrolments where the parliamentary constituency of the student cannot be established due to missing or invalid home postcodes. (2) This field collects the socio-economic classification of students participating in HE if 21 or over at the start of their course or parental classification if under 21. (3) Information is not comprehensively collected on the “Never worked and long-term unemployed” category for students: Students who fit this group are usually classed as having missing information. (4) Covers students whose socio-economic classification was missing or not classified: not classified includes occupations which were inadequately described, not classifiable or unstated. Note: Figures are based on a HESA standard registration population and have been rounded up or down to the nearest five, therefore components may not sum to totals. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) | ||||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 640W—continued
| Table 2: Full-time undergraduate enrolments( 1) from Dacorum census district by age and socio-economic classification( 2) UK higher education institutions academic years 2003/04 to 2007/08 | ||||||||||
| 2003/04 | 2004/05 | 2005/06 | 2006/07 | 2007/08 | ||||||
| Socio-economic classification | 21 and under | Over 21 | 21 and under | Over 21 | 21 and under | Over 21 | 21 and under | Over 21 | 21 and under | Over 21 |
| (1) The table does not include enrolments where the Census district of the student cannot be established due to missing or invalid home postcodes. (2) This field collects the socio-economic classification of students participating in HE if 21 or over at the start of their course or parental classification if under 21. (3) Information is not comprehensively collected on the “Never worked and long-term unemployed” category for students: Students who fit this group are usually classed as having missing information. (4) Covers students whose socio-economic classification was missing or not classified: not classified includes occupations which were inadequately described, not classifiable or unstated. Note: Figures are based on a HESA standard registration population and have been rounded up or down to the nearest five, therefore components may not sum to totals. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) | ||||||||||
| Table 3: Full-time undergraduate enrolments( 1) from Hertfordshire local authority by and socio-economic classification( 2 ) UK higher education institutions academic years 2003/04 to 2007/08 | ||||||||||
| 2003/04 | 2004/05 | 2005/06 | 2006/07 | 2007/08 | ||||||
| Socio-economic classification | 21 and under | Over 21 | 21 and under | Over 21 | 21 and under | Over 21 | 21 and under | Over 21 | 21 and under | Over 21 |
| (1) The table does not include enrolments where the Local Authority of the student cannot be established due to missing or invalid home postcodes. (2) This field collects the socio-economic classification of students participating in HE if 21 or over at the start of their course or parental classification if under 21. (3) Information is not comprehensively collected on the “Never worked and long-term unemployed” category for students: Students who fit this group are usually classed as having missing information. (4) Covers students whose socio-economic classification was missing or not classified: not classified includes occupations which were inadequately described, not classifiable or unstated. Notes: Figures are based on a HESA standard registration population and have been rounded up or down to the nearest five, therefore components may not sum to totals. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) | ||||||||||
Mike Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many students were receiving non-repayable maintenance grants from (a) Dacorum and (b) Hertfordshire County Council local education authority in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the average grant received by such students was in that period. [289414]
| Students awarded grants in academic year 2008/09 (provisional)( 1) | ||
| Local authority | Number of students awarded grants | Average (£) |
| (1) Figures cover the Higher Education Grant, the Maintenance Grant and grants and allowances for children and dependents. Each of these grant types has a different maximum entitlement amount. Data at mid-November 2008. Figures may change as later applications are processed. Source: Student Loans Company | ||
Reliable information is not available at district level.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 642W—continued
Mr. Touhig: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many non-UK domiciled students of each nationality were offered and accepted places on veterinary science degree courses at universities in England in the last five academic years. [291535]
Mr. Lammy: The information is in the following table. A further breakdown of each non-UK student's country of domicile or declared nationality is not available. Figures for academic year 2009-10 are not yet available.
| Offers and acceptances for non-UK domiciled applicants for veterinary science degrees at institutions in England | |||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
| Notes: 1. ‘Offers’ covers students who were offered a place which was dependent on obtaining satisfactory exam results or on non-academic conditions. 2. Accepted applicants cover students who obtained specified results and were accepted for study on their chosen course. Source: UCAS | |||||
Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many pupils in Tamworth constituency entered higher education in each year since 1997; and what estimate he has made of the number of such pupils entering higher education in (a) 2009, (b) 2010 and (c) 2011. [291460]
Mr. Lammy: The Government do not make forward estimates of the number of students entering higher education disaggregated at a constituency level.
The numbers of 18-year-old undergraduate entrants to UK higher education institutions from Tamworth constituency, in each year since 1997, are shown in the
table. Figures for the 2008/09 academic year will be available from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) in January 2010.
| 18-year-old undergraduate entrants( 1) from Tamworth constituency( 2) , UK higher education institutions( 3) , academic years 1997/98 to 2007/08 | |
| Academic year | Number |
| (1) Covers entrants to full-time and part-time courses. (2) The table does not include entrants where the parliamentary constituency of the student cannot be established due to missing or invalid home postcodes. (3 )Excludes the Open university due inconsistencies in their coding of entrants across the time series. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). | |
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what percentage of each of the 30 main industrial sectors in the UK is foreign-owned. [292134]
| Percentage of output (gross value added (GVA)) generated by UK and foreign-owned companies, 2006 | ||
| Sector | Foreign owned | UK owned |
| (1) The Annual Business Inquiry does not cover all parts of the services and other categories. Source: National Statistics (derived from Annual Business Inquiry regional data, published in Regional Economic Performance Indicators, 2009 (BERR)) | ||
Gregory Barker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what work Infrastructure UK plans to take in relation to (a) broadband communications and (b) the development of a smart grid electricity network. [289852]
Mr. McFadden: We are in the process of establishing the future work plan for Infrastructure UK. As detailed in “Building Britain’s Future”, full details of the new body will be announced and it is intended that a chair appointed in time for the pre-Budget report.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with the Department for Energy and Climate Change on energy infrastructure in relation to the establishment of Infrastructure UK. [289774]
Mr. McFadden: We have regular discussions with DECC on energy infrastructure.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what work Infrastructure UK plans to take in collaboration with Ofgem. [289854]
Mr. McFadden: We are in the process of establishing the future work plan for Infrastructure UK. As detailed in “Building Britain’s Future”, full details of the new body will be announced and it is intended that a chair appointed in time for the pre-Budget report.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many reports reviewed as part of the recent Statement of Insolvency Practice 16 performance report did not provide sufficient information to creditors on valuation and marketing. [290055]
Ian Lucas: The disproportionate cost threshold for providing an answer to a parliamentary question is £750.
The area of the Department responsible for answering a parliamentary question assesses the costs involved, including staff and other resources, and whether this represents disproportionate cost.
To answer this question would involve examining some 202 separate reports. To determine which of those reports did not provide sufficient information regarding valuation and/or marketing would require significant staff resources, which would be in excess of the £750 disproportionate cost threshold.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many of the failed reports referred to in the recent Statement of Insolvency Practice 16 performance report related to insolvency practitioners under each of the authorising bodies in the UK. [290056]
Ian Lucas: The disproportionate cost threshold for providing an answer to a parliamentary question is £750.
The area of the Department responsible for answering a parliamentary question assesses the costs involved, including staff and other resources, and whether this represents disproportionate cost.
To answer this question would involve examining some 202 separate reports. Administration appointments are also often held by more than one insolvency practitioner acting on a joint and several basis.
To determine which insolvency practitioners provided information deemed non-compliant with SIP 16 by reference to their authorising body would therefore require significant staff resources, which would be in excess of the £750 disproportionate cost threshold.
Lorely Burt:
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which insolvency practitioners persistently breached Statement of Insolvency
Practice (SIP) 16 as referred to in the recent SIP 16 performance report. [290058]
Ian Lucas: The Insolvency Service considers that the information you have requested is exempt information under section 40 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA). Section 40 (2) applies where the information sought is not the personal data of the applicant and either of the conditions in subsections 3 or 4 of that section is satisfied.
The Insolvency Service considers that subsection 3 applies, and disclosure of the personal data of the insolvency practitioners reporting to The Insolvency Service under the SIP 16 provisions to you would contravene the first data protection principle. The first data protection principle is defined in part 1 of schedule 1 of the Data Protection Act (DPA) and requires that data be processed fairly and lawfully and only processed if at least one of the conditions in schedule 2 is met.
The disclosure of personal information about the insolvency practitioners to you would amount to data processing as defined by the DPA in contravention of this principle as none of the conditions in schedule 2 apply.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he has taken to ensure that creditors have been provided with missing information in Statement of Insolvency Practice (SIP) 16 cases where compliance was lacking, as referred to in the recent SIP 16 performance report. [290059]
Ian Lucas: The issuing of a report under the requirements of SIP 16 is in addition to the requirements of the Insolvency Act 1986 whereby the administrator must issue a full report on his proposals for the administration within eight weeks of his appointment. In the circumstances we have not requested further missing information be published as it should be contained within the administration proposals and sent to creditors. It is always open to creditors to seek further information from the administrator if they wish to do so.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he plans to take to incorporate the recommendations of the recent Statement of Insolvency Practice (SIP) 16 performance report in SIP 16 guidance. [290084]
Ian Lucas: The Insolvency Service will work with the Recognised Professional Bodies (which authorise the majority of insolvency practitioners) to strengthen SIP 16 where necessary and issue further guidance to practitioners to ensure that creditors are given a detailed explanation and justification of why a pre-packaged sale was undertaken, so that they can be satisfied that the administrator has acted with due regard for their interests.
Mark Hunter: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department takes to recover funds from disqualified directors after their companies have been declared insolvent; and if he will make a statement. [290404]
Ian Lucas:
If an order for costs is made against a disqualified director as a result of an application by the Secretary of State or official receiver under the Company
Directors Disqualification Act 1986, then the Insolvency Service uses contract solicitors to recover those costs or to negotiate an appropriate sum.
Mark Hunter: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what responsibility his Department has for the (a) investigation and (b) bringing of legal proceedings against directors of insolvent companies in circumstances in which there is evidence of misfeasance during the winding up of the company in question; and if he will make a statement. [290405]
Ian Lucas: If the company has entered voluntary liquidation, receivership or administration, the responsibility for the investigation and the bringing of legal proceedings for misfeasance, in an asset recovery context, is a matter for the insolvency practitioner. In compulsory winding up cases, it is the responsibility of the official receiver if the official receiver remains liquidator. In practice if there is a misfeasance case to answer, in an asset recovery context, the official receiver will write to the creditors to ask whether they are prepared to fund legal proceedings. If sufficient creditors are prepared to do so, the official receiver will seek the appointment of an insolvency practitioner as liquidator to take the matter forward. Without funding from the creditors it is not possible to take recovery proceedings unless there are already substantial asset realisations in the estate and the creditors have agreed to there monies being used for this purpose.
If misfeasance is alleged as a matter of unfitted conduct in a disqualification context, then in a voluntary liquidation, receivership or administration, the insolvency practitioner has a statutory duty to report the matter to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State then has discretion to decide whether it sufficiently serious to warrant further investigation and disqualification proceedings being taken in the public interest. In a compulsory liquidation, the official receiver must decide whether it is sufficiently serious to justify submitting a disqualification report to the Secretary of State and if a disqualification report is submitted, the Secretary of State must consider the report and decide whether to authorise disqualification proceedings.
Mark Hunter: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department releases to company creditors Insolvency Service reports on the actions of disqualified directors; and if he will make a statement. [290403]
Ian Lucas: Details of unfit conduct by a disqualified director are made available to creditors and other third parties via the Insolvency Service’s website and via press releases. Official Receivers may also provide an additional report to creditors on the unfit conduct.
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009, Official Report, columns 196-7W, on the Insolvency Service: finance, how much was held in the Insolvency Service's (a) insolvency services accounts, (b) insolvency services investment account and (c) national insurance fund on average in each month of each of the last three years. [289329]
Ian Lucas: The amounts held in the Insolvency Service's (a) Insolvency Services Accounts, (b) Insolvency Services Investment Account and (c) national insurance fund on the last day of each month for the last three years were:
| £000 | |||
| Month | (a) | (b) | (c) |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 647W—continued
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009, Official Report, columns 196-7W, on the Insolvency Service: finance, how many people were employed in the Insolvency Service's investigation and enforcement unit in each of the last three years. [289330]
Ian Lucas: In each of the last three years, the number of people who were employed in the Insolvency Service's Investigation and Enforcement unit is:
As at 31 December 2006: (1)288 (114 Investigations, 96 Enforcement, 78 CIB)
As at 31 December 2007: (1)316 (135 Investigations, 102 Enforcement, 79 CIB)
As at 31 December 2008: (1)314 (129 Investigations, 111 Enforcement, 74 CIB)
As at 31 August 2009: (1)339
(1) Investigations and Enforcement was extended on 1 January 2009 to include Companies Investigation Branch (CIB). For the preceding years, figures show how many people would have been in IES, had it been extended then. Figures in brackets show how the total figure is made up.
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many companies were declared insolvent in Birmingham, Sparkbrook & Small Heath constituency in each of the last five years. [291438]
Ian Lucas: Statistics covering corporate insolvencies are not currently available at sub-national level within England and Wales.
John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the Secretary of State’s engagements were from 14 to 20 September 2009. [291679]
Mr. McFadden: My noble Friend the Secretary of State undertook various internal and external engagements during this period.
John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many discussions the Secretary of State has had with representatives of the (a) automotive, (b) aerospace, (c) engineering, (d) fast moving consumer goods, (e) cleantech, (f) mail service and (g) the music industry since October 2008; on what dates such discussions took place; and who the industry representatives were on each such occasion. [291765]
Mr. McFadden: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Cotswold (Mr. Clifton-Brown) on 16 September 2009, Official Report, column 2199.
John Mason: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 1 June 2009, Official Report, column 62W, on Members: correspondence, when he plans to reply to the letter of 20 February 2009 from the Member for Glasgow East on small businesses in Glasgow. [289626]
Mr. McFadden: The Permanent Secretary for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills responded to the hon. Member on 13 August.
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire, dated 16 June 2009, on tied lease agreements. [289868]
Mr. McFadden: My hon. Friend, the Minister for Further Education, Skills, Apprenticeships and Consumer Affairs (Kevin Brennan) responded to the hon. Member on 28 July.
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 1 June 2009, Official Report, column 62W, on Members: correspondence, when the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State will reply to the email from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire of 5 March, on funding for pubs. [289946]
Mr. McFadden: The permanent secretary, Simon Fraser, responded to the hon. Member on 24 August. I apologise for the delay.
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 22 June 2009, Official Report, column 696W, on Members: correspondence, (1) when the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Economic Competitiveness, Small Business and Enterprise will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire of 21 April 2009, on Royal Worcester porcelain; [289948]
(2) when the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Economic Competitiveness, Small Business and Enterprise plans to reply to the letter of 21 April 2009 from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire, on Royal Worcester porcelain. [292306]
Mr. McFadden: The Minister responded on 17 September. I apologise for the delay.
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) pursuant to the answer of 1 June 2009, Official Report, columns 61-2W, on Members: correspondence, when the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State will reply to the email from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire of 13 February 2009, on dormant companies; [289949]
(2) pursuant to the answer of 1 June 2009, to the hon. Member for West Worcestershire, Official Report, column 61W, on Members: correspondence, when the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State plans to reply to the email of 13 February 2009 from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire, on dormant companies. [292297]
Mr. McFadden: My noble Friend, the Minister for Economic Competitiveness, Small Business and Enterprise, responded on 22 September. I apologise for the delay.
Mr. Lilley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) what estimate the Government made of the proportion of UK companies which took steps to prepare for the millennium date change; [290687]
(2) whether his Department's predecessor undertook any review of its programme of preparation for the millennium date change. [290688]
Ian Lucas [holding answer 9 September 2009]: The risk to the UK economy from the millennium bug was judged to lie predominantly with the 250,000 SME companies in the UK. The primary aim of the Action 2000 programme was therefore to communicate to this diverse group, and this strategy resulted in an overall readiness rate for the SME sector of 86 per cent.
This information is contained in a publication presented to Parliament in April 2000 entitled ‘Modernising Government in Action: Realising the Benefits of Y2K’ (Cm 4703), which also reviewed the Action 2000 programme more generally, in the context of learning lessons for future initiatives.
Adam Afriyie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many days per week on average the Minister for Digital Britain spends in the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills. [291742]
Mr. Timms: I discharge my ministerial duties from my BIS or HMT offices or elsewhere, as appropriate.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many misconduct claims relating to (a) pre-pack administrations and (b) other administrations there were in each of the last four years. [290057]
Ian Lucas: Insolvency legislation does not distinguish between “pre-pack” and other administrations. Disqualification claims against the directors of insolvent companies are not recorded by reference to specific insolvency procedures.
The Insolvency Service does not therefore hold the information requested.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many cars have been purchased under the scrappage scheme in (a) Merseyside and (b) Crosby to date. [289252]
Ian Lucas: Using data based on the locations of dealerships and data for scrappage transactions which have been completed and cars delivered, there have been 1312 completed scrappage transactions in Merseyside. There have been 29 completed transactions in the Crosby constituency.
Mr. George Osborne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many (a) loans and (b) loan guarantees have been given under the Automotive Assistance Programme; and what the monetary value is of each. [291221]
Ian Lucas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: No loans or guarantees have been made under the AAP yet.
BIS has already been in direct contact with nearly two-thirds of all companies who qualify for AAP assistance. To date, BIS officials have worked with over 20 companies on their formal expressions of interest.
BIS officials are in advanced negotiations with companies for applications with a value of some £1 billion driving projects worth nearly £2 billion, and there are discussions in place that have the potential to lead to awards of a further £1 billion.
The AAP is a long-term investment programme and the pace is being dictated by the companies who ask for time to prepare their business cases and negotiate financing with potential lenders.
The details of support to companies are commercially sensitive and subject to agreement. As a general rule, the Government’s intention is to offer loan guarantees, though there is scope under the scheme to offer loans as well.
Mr. Holloway: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many applications for funding under the Vehicle Scrappage Scheme have been refused because the applicant first registered the vehicle in Germany while serving in the armed forces; whether officials in his Department have had discussions with the Ministry of Defence on the inclusion of such vehicles in the scheme; and if he will make a statement. [291283]
Ian Lucas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: No applications for funding under the Vehicle Scrappage Scheme have been refused by BIS, provided British Forces Germany have been able to verify the date of registration of the vehicle on their registration database, and provided the other scheme criteria are met. This arrangement follows discussion and agreement between officials in my Department and the MOD.
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations he has received from the automotive industry on the automotive assistance programme since its introduction. [291885]
Ian Lucas: BIS has been in regular contact with the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders about the Automotive Assistance Programme (AAP) as well as direct contact with over 90 automotive companies (including Tata Motors European Technical Centre where a £10 million loan has been announced). We have been working with over 20 companies on their formal expressions of interest.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what partnerships by the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals Research has entered into with animal welfare organisations since its establishment. [290371]
Mr. Lammy: The Government established the National Centre for Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) in 2004 to accelerate the development and application of the 3Rs. The NC3Rs works with research funders, universities, industry, regulatory authorities and animal welfare organisations to advance the 3Rs.
Since its inception, the NC3Rs has worked with the UK's leading animal welfare organisations; the Fund for the Replacement of Animals in Medical Experiments (FRAME), the RSPCA and the Universities Federation for Animal Welfare (UFAW).
This year, the NC3Rs held a joint meeting with FRAME to celebrate two important landmarks; FRAME's 40 anniversary and the 50 anniversary of the publication which first described the principles of the 3Rs. The NC3Rs, also in 2009, jointly published with the RSPCA guidance on the sharing and archiving of genetically altered mice. The centre is also a member of the UFAW 3Rs Liaison Group and over the last three years has provided £30,000 to support the group's goal of funding studentships to develop practical solutions that advance laboratory animal welfare.
Greg Clark: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what funding his Department has provided to the National Skills Academy for Nuclear since its creation; and what funding his Department plans to give to the academy in (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2010-11. [289792]
Kevin Brennan: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) manages the National Skills Academy (NSA) programme on behalf of BIS and leads the NSA selection and appraisal process. Once a NSA has been approved, and subject to LSC funding priorities, NSAs can draw on funding from the LSC for three years, matched by contributions from business. After this the NSA is expected to be self sustainable through financial investment from employers and income from the NSA’s activities.
The NSA for Nuclear was officially launched by Government on the 31 January 2008, following approval of their three year business plan to take the NSA to the end of its development period in 2011.
The total LSC funding to date (including £504,431 paid so far this year) is £6,718,904. In 2009/10 the total planned funding (including that already provided) is £1,419,200 with £43,288 planned funding for 2010-11.
The NSA has also submitted applications for capital funding to the LSC for 2009-10 and 2010-11, which are currently being assessed.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills for which non-departmental public bodies his Department is responsible; and what the budget of each is for 2009-10. [290087]
Mr. McFadden:
The NDPBs for which the Department is responsible in 2009-10 and their budget are set out in the following table. Where the budget figures and BIS
funding are different, this is because the bodies receive funding from other sources such as other Government Departments.
| £ million | ||
| Name of body | Dep artment funding | Budget 2009-10 |
|
National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA) | ||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 654W—continued
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many times the (a) Aerospace Innovation and Growth Leadership Council, (b) Business Council for Britain, (c) Capital for Enterprise Advisory Board, (d) Environmental Innovations Advisory Group, (e) Ethnic Minority Business Task Force, (f) Ministerial Advisory Body on Manufacturing, (g) Motorsport Development UK Advisory Board, (h) Risk and Regulatory Advisory Council, (i) Vulnerable Workers Pilot Practitioners’ Panel and (j) Women’s Enterprise Task Force has met in each of the last four years; and when each body was established. [291902]
Ian Lucas: The information is as follows.
| Times met in: | ||||||
| Name of body | Established (date) | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 |
| n/a = not applicable (1) Ended | ||||||
Greg Clark: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will place in the Library a copy of the (a) display energy certificate and (b) advisory report for public buildings issued in respect of each property occupied by (i) the Office of Fair Trading, (ii) the Postal Services Commission and (iii) UK Trade and Investment. [289846]
Mr. McFadden: The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) have published central Government Department’s Display Energy Certificate (DEC) operational ratings on a building by building level. These can be found at:
www.ogc.gov.uk/government_delivery_display_energy_ certificate_data.asp
It should be noted that the Postal Services Commission share Hercules house in London with the Cabinet Office and UK Trade and Investment share Kingsgate house in London with this Department. The Office of Fair Trading occupy Fleetbank house and they are listed under their name.
The table that OGC have published also includes DEC reference numbers for each building. These can be used to view each building’s advisory report on the following website:
https://www.ndepcregister.com/home.html
Mr. Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people were employed in each non-departmental public body which received funding from his Department and its predecessors in each of the last five years. [289828]
Mr. McFadden: The Department has sponsorship responsibility for the non-departmental public bodies listed below. Information on staff numbers for the last five years can be found in their annual report which can be downloaded from the Internet.
The advisory NDPBs sponsored by the Department incur little or no expenditure and their administration is undertaken by Departmental officials, who have other responsibilities.
Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS)
British Hallmarking Council
Capital for Enterprise Ltd
Competition Commission
Competition Service
Consumer Focus
Construction Industry Training Board
Design Council
Engineering Construction Industry Training Board
Film Industry Training Board for England and Wales
Hearing Aid Council
Higher Education Funding Council for England
Investors in People UK
SITPRO (Simplifying International Trade)
Learning and Skills Council
Local Better Regulation Office (LBRO)
National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts
Office for Fair Access
Student Loans Company Ltd
Technology Strategy Board
UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA)
UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES)
Advantage West Midlands
South East England Development Agency
East of England Development Agency
South West of England Regional Development Agency
ONE North East
East Midlands Development Agency
Northwest Regional Development Agency
Yorkshire Forward
Arts and Humanities Research Council
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
Economic and Social Research Council
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
Medical Research Council
Natural Environment Research Council
Science and Technology Facilities Council
Industrial Development Advisory Board
Low Pay Commission
Regional Industrial Development Boards
Union Modernisation Fund Supervisory Board
Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Advisory Board
Council for Science and Technology
Strategic Advisory Board for Intellectual Property
Central Arbitration Committee
Competition Appeal Tribunal
Insolvency Practitioners Tribunal
Copyright Tribunal
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 20 July 2009, Official Report, column 1124W, on the North West Development Agency: Public appointments, when the decision to appoint a new chair of the North West Development Agency was taken. [290375]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The decision to appoint Robert Hough as the chair of the North West Development Agency was made on 29 June. It was announced in Parliament on 9 July.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 20 July 2009, Official Report, column 1124W, on the North West Development Agency: public appointments, when he expects the new chair of the North West Development Agency to take up the appointment. [290378]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Robert Hough took up the position as chair of the North West Regional Development Agency on 17 August.
John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many times the Secretary of State received hospitality from representatives of the (a) automotive, (b) aerospace, (c) financial services, (d) fast moving consumer goods, (e) digital media, (f) mail service, (g) cleantech and (h) the music industry; on what dates such hospitality was provided; and who the industry representatives were in each case. [291764]
Mr. McFadden: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Cotswold (Mr. Clifton-Brown) on 16 September 2009, Official Report, column 2197W.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the monetary value is of operational management support contracts his Department has outsourced to consultants. [290222]
Mr. McFadden: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills does not have a classification called operational management support.
Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what his policy is on encouraging trade and investment between the UK and Kazakhstan; and if he will make a statement. [291263]
Ian Lucas [holding answer 16 September 2009]: UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) offers a full range of services for companies who wish to do business in Kazakhstan through trade and investment teams based in Astana and Atyrau. UKTI sponsored the Kazakh Growth Forum in June aimed at promoting business with Kazakhstan and contributed to the organisation of the visit by the lord mayor of London to Kazakhstan in late July this year. Next month my right hon. Friend the Minister for Higher Education and Intellectual Property (Mr. Lammy) will visit Kazakhstan to reinforce the UK’s position as a preferred partner of Kazakhstan on higher and vocational education co-operation and represent the UK at the annual Kazakhstan International Oil and Gas Exhibition.
UKTI also provides support for the Kazakh British Trade and Industrial Council. The council identifies new business opportunities and also focuses on ways to tackle barriers to trade and improve the environment for business. The last meeting was in Astana in July.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what assistance his Department provides to businesses from the Maldives wishing to (a) invest in the UK and (b) take part in joint ventures with UK companies; how much his Department made available for these purposes in each of the last two years; and if he will make a statement. [289622]
Mr. McFadden: Businesses from any country, including the Maldives, are provided with assistance to invest in the UK or take part in joint ventures with UK companies either by UK Trade and Investment or the English Regional Development Agencies or Devolved Administrations. Full details of these services are available publicly on UKTI’s website and the websites of the DAs and RDAs.
There are no specific funds for either investment or trade with any one market.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the value of (a) import and (b) exports of (i) goods and (ii) services between the Maldives and the United Kingdom was in each of the last 10 years. [289610]
Ian Lucas: The information is as follows.
(i) Overseas Trade Statistics data for UK trade in goods with the Maldives are shown in the following table.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 658W—continued
| £ million | ||
| UK imports of goods from the Maldives | UK exports of goods to the Maldives | |
(ii) Data on trade in services are not available for the full 10 years requested. Table 9.13 of the UK Balance of Payments “Pink Book 2009” gives the following figures for UK trade in services with the Maldives
| £ million | ||
| UK imports of services from the Maldives | UK exports of services to the Maldives | |
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he (a) has taken in the last 12 months and (b) plans to take in the next 12 months to increase trade between the United Kingdom and the Maldives; how much his Department has spent on the promotion of trade between the United Kingdom and the Maldives in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [289611]
Ian Lucas: The UK trade and investment team in Colombo which is responsible for trade and investment relations with the Maldives has undertaken a scoping mission to the Maldives and maintains regular contact with the Maldivian Ministry of Commerce. This scoping mission cost approximately £300. No other expenditure has been incurred in the last 12 months.
In the coming 12 months UKTI has arranged for the Maldivian high commissioner in London to give a presentation on opportunities in the market to its regional trade advisers.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many officials in his Department of each grade worked on the promotion of trade between the United Kingdom and the Maldives (a) in each year between 1998 and 2008 and (b) on the most recent date for which figures are available. [289612]
Ian Lucas: UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) does not deliver official services in the Maldives, but lobbying on behalf of British companies may be carried out on a case by case basis by the high commission in Colombo. It is not therefore possible to give a precise breakdown of staff spent on trade promotion in the Maldives.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much trade with the Maldives contributed to gross domestic product in each of the last two years; what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in the Maldives on increasing trade between the UK and the Maldives; and if he will make a statement. [289623]
Ian Lucas:
Due to the difficulty of differentiating between the impact of trade and other factors on growth, it is not possible to quantify precisely the impact of trade with another country on GDP. The value of UK
exports of goods and services to the Maldives in each of 2007 and 2008 corresponded to about 0.001 per cent. of the value of UK GDP, and UK imports from the Maldives to about 0.01 per cent.
No formal discussions regarding increased bilateral trade have taken place. However my officials are in regular contact with the Maldives high commission and the UK trade and investment team in Colombo maintains regular contact with the Maldives Ministry of Commerce.
Harry Cohen: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what proposed new trade sanctions against Iran the UK is supporting in international discussions. [291270]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: I have been asked to reply.
The UK is in discussion with its international partners to decide how to address Iran's failure, so far, to indicate a willingness to negotiate over its nuclear programme. Discussions on further measures, including trade sanctions, are in their early stages and form part of a confidential dialogue with close allies. It would not be appropriate to publicly disclose the precise details at this stage. Details will however be made available as soon as possible.
Mike Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate has he made of the number of people in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire who took (i) paternity and (ii) maternity leave in the most recent period for which figures are available. [289413]
Mr. McFadden: The most recent estimates of take-up of maternity leave are based on Maternity Rights and Mother’s Employment Decisions (published 2007). The survey is based on a random sample of mothers who had a baby between February and May 2006.
Of mothers in paid work, all took at least some of their entitlement to maternity leave.
Up-to-date estimates of fathers taking paternity leave are from the Maternity and Paternity Rights and Benefits in Britain: Survey of Parents, conducted in 2005. 93 per cent. of fathers took some time off around the time of the birth. Of the 93 per cent. who took some time off, 79 per cent. took paternity leave (The survey is based on a random sample of mothers who had a baby in December 2003 and their partners).
The Department does not collect data on take-up of maternity and paternity leave at constituency level.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on how many occasions in the last 10 years a conflict has arisen between the Patent Office and the European Patent Office over the registration of individual patents. [290079]
Mr. Lammy:
A number of applicants file similar patent applications at both the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) and the European Patent Office (EPO). In cases where both applications result in granted patents valid in the UK, the IPO carries out a check to determine
whether there is a conflict, that is whether both applications relate to the same invention. It will revoke a GB patent if an EP patent for the same invention is granted designating the UK. Over the past nine years, 1,148 GB patents were considered by the IPO for revocation in these circumstances (the data for the tenth year is not available). Many applicants amend one or other to remove any conflict, therefore avoiding revocation. There are over 500 cases where an application has been granted by one office and not the other, which is well below 1 per cent. of the total number of patents granted by the two offices. In many cases these applications are still pending before the other office. Determining precisely the outcome of the remainder, many of which will have been withdrawn for the applicant’s own reasons, would involve information which is not held centrally and which could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what payments the Economic and Social Research Council has made to Ms Polly Toynbee in the last five years; and for what purposes. [290998]
Mr. Lammy [holding answer 14 September 2009]: In the last five years the Economic and Social Research Council has made the following payments to Ms Polly Toynbee:
2004-05—£587.50 for an Evaluation Review of an ESRC Research Centre, involving three days work;
2005-06—£881.25 for an article for ESRC Society Today, the ESRC website. The article was 1,800 words long and involved two days work;
2009-10—£400 for chairing an ESRC lecture on Recession and the Green Economy.
Mr. Newmark: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he has received reports of errors in the Post Office Horizon system which have led to Postmasters or Postmistresses being falsely accused of fraud; and if he will make a statement. [291675]
Mr. McFadden: The Department has received no such reports. Any issues relating to the Horizon system are operational matters for Post Office Ltd. I have therefore asked Alan Cook, managing director of Post Office Ltd., to respond directly to the hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the House Libraries.
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he plans to take to seek to increase the level of profit made by Post Office Limited. [290428]
Mr. McFadden: The Government are keen for Post Office Ltd. to develop its range of products and services and the shareholder executive in this Department is working with the company to examine the scope and opportunities for this. However, it is for the company to determine a business and commercial strategy to increase its profitability.
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department has made an assessment of the length of time for which the Network Subsidy Payment or a successor arrangement will be required to subsidise Post Office Limited. [290429]
Mr. McFadden: The Government recognise that there will be a continuing need for subsidy payments to support the non-commercial part of the post office network beyond March 2011 when the present funding package comes to an end.
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will bring forward proposals to increase the availability and clarity of information on the revenue received from Post Office Limited by the Royal Mail Group. [290515]
Mr. McFadden: Post Office Ltd. prepares a statutory report and accounts annually and these are publicly available through Companies House. As these indicate, Post Office Ltd. meets the full costs of employment of its staff who are all seconded from Royal Mail Group. In 2008-09 these costs totalled £293 million. In addition, Post Office Ltd. pays its share of the Royal Mail Group’s central costs to its parent company.
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what his policy is on the re-opening of Post Office branches in areas in which such branches had closed. [290340]
Mr. McFadden: Government policy is to maintain a sustainable nationwide network of around 11,500 post offices and in 2007 committed funding to 2011 in support of this policy. Decisions on the opening or re-opening of individual post office branches are an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. The company has an established framework for dialogue with local authorities and community groups interested in funding continued service provision where a branch has closed. In such circumstances, Post Office Ltd will need to ensure that this does not adversely affect the viability of the local network of post offices.
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many Post Office branches are required to meet his Department’s access criteria for Post Office branches. [290341]
Mr. McFadden: Post Office Ltd. estimates that the minimum size of network necessary to meet the access criteria is around 7,500 offices but it is Government policy to maintain a sustainable network of around 11,500 post offices. The £1.7 billion funding package announced in May 2007 supports the network at that level to 2011 and the Government recognise that there will be a continuing need for network subsidy payments beyond 2011.
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether the Government has had recent discussions with Post Office Limited on future numbers of Post Office branches. [290342]
Mr. McFadden: Ministers have regular discussions with Post Office Ltd. about a wide range of issues including network size. Government policy is to maintain a sustainable nationwide network of around 11,500 post offices and the Government have stated that they will not support a future programme of closures.
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what his policy is on the use of Post Office services by Government departments. [290427]
Mr. McFadden: The Government are keen for the Post Office to develop their Government Services work and have an established mechanism for aiding this through a cross-Whitehall committee chaired by the Secretary of State for Business. The Government have shown their commitment to using the Post Office to provide services for Government through the award of the Post Office Card Account contract in November 2008, as well as the deal in March 2009 with the DVLA to allow the capture of biometric data (photographs and signatures) for the 10-year renewal of driving licences at 750 Post Offices around the country.
Mr. Charles Kennedy: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many (a) Crown post offices, (b) full branches, (c) mobile outreach services, (d) hosted outreach services, (e) partner services and (f) home services branches there are in the Post Office branch network. [291738]
Mr. McFadden: I have asked Alan Cook, managing director of Post Office Ltd., to respond directly to the right hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Mr. Charles Kennedy: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many Post Office branches that have closed temporarily since the end of the Network Change Programme have (a) re-opened with the same hours, (b) re-opened with reduced hours, (c) re-opened with increased hours, (d) not yet re-opened, (e) been replaced by an outreach service and (f) been closed permanently. [291739]
Mr. McFadden: The Department does not hold the information requested. I have therefore asked Alan Cook, managing director of Post Office Ltd., to respond directly to the right hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the House Libraries.
Mr. Charles Kennedy: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills in which postcode districts the Post Office branch network does not meet the access criteria adopted under the Network Change Programme. [291740]
Mr. McFadden: I have asked Alan Cook, managing director of Post Office Ltd., to respond directly to the right hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 663W—continued
Joan Walley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment his Department has made of the merits of establishing a state-owned post bank based upon the Post Office network. [289712]
Mr. McFadden: The idea of a state-owned Post Bank as proposed by, among others, the Post Bank Coalition, is an interesting contribution to the debate on Post Office financial services. The Government's priorities with respect to Post Office personal financial services are that the Post Office grows this important part of its business and continues to increase the range of products available across the network. This is an aim that the Business and Enterprise Select Committee report on ‘Post Offices—Securing Their Future’ supports. Post Office Ltd is working hard on this and has recently announced that it aims to launch a current account next year.
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many post office branches in Birmingham Sparkbrook & Small Heath constituency have been closed in each year since 2004; and how many such branches have been replaced by Outreach services. [291565]
Mr. McFadden: The Department does not hold the information requested. I have therefore asked Alan Cook, Managing Director of Post Office Ltd, to respond directly to the hon. Friend and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Mike Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many post office branches there were in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency and (b) Hertfordshire in each of the last 30 years. [289408]
Mr. McFadden: This is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. (POL).
I have therefore asked Alan Cook, Managing Director of POL, to reply direct to the hon. Member with the information requested and a copy of his reply will be placed in the House Libraries.
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what changes are being made to the (a) total budget and (b) capital budget of each regional development agency as a consequence of the policies announced in the Draft Legislative programme 2009-10 in each year for which information is available. [289549]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Changes to budgets, resulting from new legislation, would normally be made once the Bills are enacted. We do not envisage any likely changes to RDA budgets as a consequence of the policies announced in the Draft Legislative programme 2009-10.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many (a) black and minority ethnic people and (b) women have served as board members of a regional development agency (RDA); and what percentage of the board of each RDA each group represented in each year since 2001. [291760]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Details of the number of women and black and minority ethnic people on the Regional Development Boards since 2001 and shown as a percentage of the Board.
For new appointments up to April 2009 BIS have 33.5 per cent. women and 4. per cent. black and ethnic minorities on their boards overall. BIS targets by 2011 are 50 per cent. board members to be women and 11 per cent. ethnic minority.
| Women | ||||||||||||||||||
| 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | ||||||||||
| RDA | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| Ethnic Minority | ||||||||||||||||||
| 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | ||||||||||
| RDA | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 666W—continued
The London Development Agency is not included in the above statistics as it is the responsibility of the Mayor of London and not the Minister.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much was paid in remuneration to (a) the Chief Executive and (b) each board member of each regional development agency, including benefits in kind in each of the last three years. [277994]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 4 June 2009]: The break down of the total financial value of the remuneration made to (a) RDA chief executives; and (b) the board members of each RDA, including benefits in kind, in each of the last three years is detailed by RDA in the tables (the information excludes London, which is the responsibility of the Mayor). The RDA chairs details are identified separately to the other board members as their remuneration entitlements are different.
the total cash remuneration = basic salary (before tax) + performance related bonus (bonuses are awarded based on performance against objectives delivered in the previous year); and
total remuneration package = total cash remuneration + pension + benefits in kind (where the RDA has benefits in kind in place).
the total remuneration = basic remuneration paid. Board members are only paid a remuneration figure agreed by the SoS in accordance with the RDA Act 1998. These posts do not attract bonuses, pensions or benefits in kind.
Copies of the tables will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the annual budget is for each year to 2011 of each (a) national and (b) UKTI programme operated by regional development agencies and not included in the Solutions for Business portfolio. [291355]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 16 September 2009]: The RDA total budget for 2009-10 is £2.253 billion and the budget for 2010-11 is £1.762 billion. RDAs are in the process of producing revised corporate plans showing how this will be spent in each region. The amount of money spent by each agency on Solutions for Business products and on other types of intervention will vary according to local and regional need for particular forms of business support and the wider economic context.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of grant assistance given by his Department to developers of marine renewables technology in the last five years; [291698]
(2) how much funding his Department has provided to developers of marine renewable energy technology in the last five years. [291699]
Ian Lucas: In the last five years, the Department’s funding to developers of marine renewable energy technology has primarily been delivered through the Technology Strategy Board (TSB). Support for collaborative R and D provided by the TSB to developers of wave and tidal renewable energy technologies in the last five years is as follows:
| £000 | |
BIS also supports developers indirectly through investments via the Energy Technologies Institute and the Research Councils:
In January the ETI announced £11 million for ReDAPT, to demonstrate the viability of a 1 MW tidal turbine, and expects to announce further marine projects with a potential value of £10 million during the next quarter.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what mechanisms are in place to monitor the use by developers of marine renewables technology of financial assistance provided by his Department in the last five years. [292024]
Ian Lucas: The Department’s support to developers of marine renewable energy technology is delivered through its delivery partners.
Tidal energy projects funded by the Technology Strategy Board are monitored by a dedicated monitoring officer who is technically qualified to work in this specialist area and monitoring is carried out against:
Stated project outputs, deliverables and milestones.
The original and revised project plans, and
Budgeted expenditure versus total grant.
Projects are monitored monthly with formal reports furnished on a quarterly basis.
Projects supported by the Energy Technologies Institute involve:
Monthly reporting of progress (financial and non financial)
Payment against deliverables only (not effort) with clear acceptance criteria
Variations approved only as contract variation
Projects reviewed at significant key stages (stage gates; go/no go) checking technology, financial progress and integrity of business case, and
Annual reports on project progress.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department spent on Royal Mail services in each of the last five years. [290065]
Mr. McFadden: During the last five financial years, this Department and its predecessors spent the following on Royal Mail services provided to buildings on its central London estate:
| £000 | |
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department plans to take to secure the (a) short-term and (b) long-term viability of Royal Mail as a commercial enterprise. [290343]
Mr. McFadden: The Government consider that the implementation of the Hooper review recommendations as a package is the best way forward to secure Royal Mail's future. We will return to this package once market conditions are right to secure a suitable partner for Royal Mail Group Limited. In the meantime, the Government are looking to the management and the unions to take forward the modernisation of the company. We encourage both the management and the unions to work together to achieve this.
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on how many occasions the Secretary of State has met Royal Mail trustees to discuss the Royal Mail pension plan since 1 July 2009. [290344]
Mr. McFadden: The Secretary of State has met the Chair of the Royal Mail Pension Fund Trustees once since 1 July.
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans he has for the future of SkillFast-UK. [290146]
Kevin Brennan:
Skillfast-UK is an independent skills body that is currently licensed as a Sector Skills Council. Skillfast-UK was recently assessed by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills against the standards set out in the Relicensing Framework for Sector Skills Councils. The UK Commission recommended to Government that Skillfast-UK had not met the standard required of an SSC, with a proposal for consultation with the industry to identify options for future coverage of the sector. Government are in the process of considering the UK Commission's recommendation for Skillfast-UK. In the event that an SSC did not have its licence renewed
by Government, it would be asked to work with the UK Commission to ensure that the skills needs of the sector in question continue to be met. This would include access for employers to high quality labour market information about skills, and the continued development of national occupational standards that underpin qualifications that meet both employer and individual needs.
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with representatives of Skillset on the future of the creative industries in Yorkshire and the Humber. [290145]
Kevin Brennan: Since taking up post as Minister for State for Skills I have not had any discussions with Skillset about the future of the creative industries in Yorkshire and the Humber. Skillset is the Sector Skills Council for the broadcasting, photo imaging, audio visual and publishing sector. In a recent assessment by the National Audit Office, Skillset was recognised for its commitment to working across the regions in England.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the amount of carbon dioxide emissions that will be abated as a result of the elements of the Strategic Investment Fund earmarked for low-carbon projects. [285038]
Mr. McFadden: It has not been possible to estimate the impact of projects supported by the Strategic Investment Fund on future carbon dioxide emissions.
The Strategic Investment Fund is supporting the research, development and demonstration of key low carbon technologies in areas including wind and marine energy and electric vehicles, which if viable will support delivery of the carbon reduction targets to which the UK is committed. Wherever possible their potential to contribute to long-term abatement was taken into account.
The Strategic Investment Fund was established to support advanced industrial projects of strategic importance, consistent with the vision set out in New Industry, New Jobs, and the UK Low Carbon Industrial Strategy. The latter, published on 15 July 2009, set out the first investments from the £250 million of funding allocated for low carbon economic development.
Mr. Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of the £750 million Strategic Investment Fund announced in the 2009 Budget has been allocated to individual projects; and how much has been paid from the fund to eligible projects. [289833]
Mr. McFadden: Over £700 million of the £750 million within the Strategic Investment Fund has already been allocated, or is earmarked for specific projects and investments. While such allocations have been made, the money has not in itself been drawn down as claims as they will either be paid in arrears, or on the basis of future calls.
Adam Afriyie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the monetary value of payments to businesses from the is to date; what the average monetary value of such payments is; and how many (a) life sciences and (b) other businesses have received such payments. [291811]
Mr. McFadden: Over £700 million of the £750 million within the Strategic Investment Fund has already been allocated, or is earmarked for specific projects in support of the vision set out in New Industry New Jobs framework document. The remaining £50 million will be allocated to projects by the end of October.
While commitments to fund investments have been made, the money has not in itself been drawn down as claims as they will either be paid in arrears, or on the basis of future calls. There is no average monetary value of such payments at this stage due to the differing values and timing of individual calls on the SIF. No businesses have received specific payments for life sciences, at this stage.
Mr. Touhig: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much on average a (a) UK and (b) non-UK citizen pays in tuition fees to study a veterinary science degree course at a university in England. [291536]
Mr. Lammy: The information is not held by the Department.
In the academic year 2009-10 students from the UK and EU will pay up to £3,225 in tuition fees to study veterinary science degree courses. Total expenditure over the length of their course will depend on whether their institution charges the maximum fee, and on the length of the course. Loans are available to eligible students to cover the full cost of tuition fees.
Tuition fees for international students from outside of the EU are unregulated and therefore HEIs are free to set fee levels as they see fit.
Mike Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people of each age group resident in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire had not repaid their student loans on the latest date for which figures are available. [289415]
Mr. Lammy: Borrowers become liable to repay their loans in the April after they leave their course (the Statutory Repayment Due Date). After that date those with earnings of over £15,000 will repay, usually by deductions from salary. Those liable to repay who have not yet made a repayment will include borrowers whose earnings are below the repayment threshold, have gone on to further study or are doing voluntary work.
| Income-contingent loan borrowers, Hertfordshire, March 2009( 1) | |||
| Age( 2) | Numbers who have not yet made a repayment | Numbers who have made a repayment | Total |
| (1) Table covers income-contingent loan borrowers past SRDD with known repayment status, the local authority in which the borrower was resident at the time of application for student finance; this does not indicate current residence. Figures rounded to the nearest 10. (2) Age at the end of the last tax year for which repayment/non-repayment information has been posted, mainly end of tax year 2007/08. Source: Student Loans Company | |||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 671W—continued
Reliable information is not available at constituency or district level.
Mike Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much has been deducted from the salaries of individuals in each income group resident in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire for student loan repayments in the last 12 months. [289416]
Mr. Lammy: The information requested is as follows:
| Student loans PAYE deductions, Hertfordshire, tax year 2007-08 (provisional)( 1) | |||
| Earnings in tax year 2007-08 | Numbers who have had a deduction from earnings under PAYE | Amount deducted from earnings under PAYE | Average amount deducted |
| (1) Tables cover deductions by PAYE from income-contingent loans. Excludes Self Assessment deductions. Tables cover deductions which HMRC has notified to SLC by 31 March 2009. There will be further deductions notified for tax year 2007-08. The table shows the local authority where the borrower was resident at the time of application for student finance; this does not indicate current residence. Source: Student Loans Company | |||
Deductions from salaries are made when the borrowers’ income is above £15,000 per year, £1,250 per month or £288 per week.
Reliable information is not available at constituency or district level.
Mr. Djanogly:
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which (a) businesses and (b) other organisations his Department has consulted
in relation to the implementation of EU Directive 2008/104/EC on Temporary Agency Work. [290425]
Mr. McFadden: The Department’s forthcoming response to the consultation, which closed on 31 July, will include a list of the businesses and other organisations who responded publicly.
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what timetable has been set for the implementation in the UK of EU Directive 2008/104/EC on Temporary Agency Work. [290426]
Mr. McFadden: We are committed to ensuring that the implementing Regulations are on the Statute Book in the current Parliament.
The Government’s forthcoming response to the Consultation, which closed on 31 July, will be published shortly.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether the Minister for Trade, Investment and Business has met any representative of Tesco plc since relinquishing a non-executive directorship with that organisation; and if he will make a statement. [290263]
Ian Lucas: The Minister met Sir Terry Leahy on 18 June and has communicated with him through the Business Council for Britain.
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans he has to assist the development of levels of skills in relation to the fashion and textile sector. [290148]
Kevin Brennan: The Government are committed to supporting skills development in the fashion and textile sector. Skillfast-UK, which is the Sector Skills Council for the sector, sets the overall strategy for skills and engages directly with employers about their skill needs. Skillfast-UK provides labour market information for employers, and is engaged in the development of qualifications. Skillfast-UK is also running a Women and Work Sector Pathways Initiative project to develop the skills of 600 women in 2009-10 in relation to the fashion and textile sector. The Fashion Retail Academy promotes fashion retail as a career, and delivers a flow of young people to the industry with the fundamental skills required to work in the sector. Government are also providing funding through Sector Compacts to tackle skills shortages in key sectors, including fashion and textiles.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had on possible revision of the Warwick Agreement arrangement with the trades unions. [250237]
Mr. McFadden: The Labour Party's policy making structures are a matter for the Labour Party.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he plans to negotiate a revised Warwick Agreement arrangement with the trades unions. [250293]
Mr. McFadden: The Labour party's policy making structures are a matter for the Labour party.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what methodology was used to set the initial targets for the Train to Gain programme. [290269]
Kevin Brennan: Initial Train to Gain targets were set out in the Learning and Skills Council's 2006 Annual Statement of Priorities. They were based on contributing to the PSA target to reduce by at least 40 per cent. the number of adults in the workplace without a Level 2 or equivalent qualification by 2010, and an assessment of the Employer Training Pilots that preceded the start of the programme in April 2006. The assessment included the expected annual cost of the programme and the planned number of employers taking part per annum.
These targets have subsequently been updated in the LSC's 2007 Annual Statement of Priorities, and reflect the broader skills aim set out in the 2006 Leitch Review: to increase the proportion of adults holding Level 2 qualifications to 90 per cent. by 2020.
As Train to Gain is a demand-led programme, learner volumes and annual spend may differ from initial projections, depending on levels of employer demand. Regular reports are received from the LSC in order to enable the Department to monitor ongoing levels of performance.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations his Department has received from (a) the Learning and Skills Council and (b) others on the adequacy of the Train to Gain programme; and when such representations were received. [291463]
Kevin Brennan: The Department has regular and ongoing contact with the Learning and Skills Council regarding all aspects of Train to Gain delivery, and receive monthly performance reports and updated financial information.
The Department also receives frequent correspondence and other representations from colleges, employers, members of the public and other interested parties on a variety of skills policies including Train to Gain.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the average cost to the public purse of a job created under the Train to Gain programme was in the latest period for which figures are available. [290232]
Kevin Brennan: Train to Gain is a service to help employers improve the skills of their existing employees. It is not a programme that is designed to create jobs.
Mr. Newmark: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much capital funding was originally allocated to each National Construction College by the Learning and Skills Council for 2009-10; and how much of that funding has since been withdrawn from each college. [288699]
Kevin Brennan [holding answer 21 July 2009]: No capital funding has been allocated to either of the National Construction Colleges for 2009-10, and as such, no funding has since been withdrawn.
Initial approval for funding from the FE capital funding stream had been granted to the Birchen Newton proposal in autumn last year. However, following the Learning and Skills Council's recent FE capital prioritisation process, the proposal was unsuccessful, and has not been granted final approval.
As with every college, the LSC will discuss with the College on how the project can move forward.
Mr. Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the liability his Department would incur in the event of a confirmed downturn in the performance of the UK High Technology Investment Fund; what criteria would be used in determining whether such a liability had to be paid; and if he will make a statement. [289939]
Mr. McFadden: The UK Innovation Investment Fund is a 10-year Fund of Funds. The Government are committing £150 million of tax payers' investment to the UK Innovation Investment Fund and we expect to leverage significant investment from the private sector.
We aim to appoint an experienced Fund of Funds manager in December to manage the fund and make investments in underlying technology funds with the expertise and track record to invest directly in technology businesses. The Government and Capital for Enterprise Limited issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) from prospective Fund of Funds manager(s) on 3 August. The RFP sets out the Government's expectation that private and public funding should be invested on a pari-passu basis and that private investors should not receive advantageous terms. Bidders are asked to set out their investment strategies and demonstrate how they will raise money from private sector investors.
It will not possible to say any more about the nature or terms of investments into underlying funds until an investment mandate is awarded.
Adam Afriyie:
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what criteria will apply to the provision of funding to businesses from the UK Innovation Investment Fund;
when funding will begin from the Fund; what steps he has taken to inform small and medium-sized enterprises about the Fund; and whether he has set a target for the time between applying for funding and receiving funding. [291631]
Mr. Lammy: The Fund will operate on a Fund of Funds structure which means it will not invest directly in companies, but rather invest in a small number of specialist technology funds that have the expertise and track record to invest directly in companies. The Fund will only invest in those companies that have strong survival and growth prospects.
We hope to announce the appointment of a Fund of Funds Manager by Christmas 2009 and anticipate that the Fund will start investing soon after that.
There have been a number of events to promote the fund to all interested parties and there will be further events during autumn 2009 and beyond.
The Department wishes to see the fund supporting firms as soon as possible.
However, it will be down to the Fund of Funds Manager(s) to allocate funding in the most appropriate manner.
Andrew Stunell:
To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many and what proportion of people aged 16 to 24
years old were not in education, employment or training in (a) each local authority area and (b) each region in each of the last 12 quarters for which figures are available. [289275]
Kevin Brennan Table 1 and table 2 as follows show the number and percentage of people aged1 16 to 24 not in education, employment or training by Government Office Region. These estimates are from quarterly Labour Force survey (LFS) data and are rounded to the nearest 1000.
Table 3 shows the number and percentage of people aged(1) 16 to 24 not in education, employment or training by local education authority (LEA). These estimates are from the Annual Population survey (APS) which covers the period January to December. Due to the small populations of local authority areas, we have used the APS (which has a larger sample) to breakdown the estimates by LEA (larger geographical area). This enables us to provide more robust estimates.
Please note that even for regions, sample sizes can be small and these estimates are subject to sampling variability. Confidence intervals, which indicate how accurate estimates are, are between 2 and 3 percentage points for these regional estimates, and between 3 and 10 percentage points for these local education authority estimates. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest thousand and estimates denoted with a ‘*’ means less than 1000 young people are estimated to be NEET in that area.
(1)Age used is the respondents academic age, which is their age at the preceding 31 August.
| Table 1: People aged¹ 16 to 24 not in education, employment or training by region | ||||||||||||
| Q3 2006 | Q4 2006 | Q1 2007 | Q2 2007 | Q3 2007 | Q4 2007 | Q1 2008 | Q2 2008 | Q3 2008 | Q4 2008 | Q1 2009 | Q2 2009 | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 676W—continued
| Table 2: Percentage of people aged¹ 16 to 24 not in education, employment or training by region | ||||||||||||
| Q3 2006 | Q4 2006 | Q1 2007 | Q2 2007 | Q3 2007 | Q4 2007 | Q1 2008 | Q2 2008 | Q3 2008 | Q4 2008 | Q1 2009 | Q2 2009 | |
| Table 3: People aged¹ 16 to 24 not in education, employment or training by local education authority | ||||||
| 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | ||||
| NEET | Percentage | NEET | Percentage | NEET | Percentage | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 682W—continued
Mr. Moss: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many young people were not in education, employment or training in (a) England and (b) North East Cambridgeshire in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [291284]
Mr. Iain Wright [ h olding answer 16 September 2009]: I have been asked to reply.
Estimates of participation in education, training and employment for those aged 16 to 18 are published by the Department in a Statistical First Release (SFR) each June and can be found on the Department's website
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000792/index.shtml
These estimates cannot be broken down to constituency level. However, Connexions Services collect information on the number and proportion of 16 to 18-year-olds NEET in each local authority area. Figures for Cambridgeshire are shown in the following table. As the Connexions data set is calculated in a different way to the Department's official estimates set out above, comparative figures for England are also shown. Figures for Cambridgeshire are not available prior to 2006.
| 16 t o 18-year-olds NEET (Connexions e stimates) | ||||
| 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | ||
Through the September Guarantee, we are providing every young person aged 16 to 17 with a suitable offer of a place in learning. This has helped us to make excellent progress on participation, with a record level of 88 per cent. of 16 to 17-year-olds in education and training at the end of 2008, and the third consecutive fall in the proportion of 16 to 17 year olds NEET. Connexions services provide advice and support to all young people and since April 2009, 18-year-old jobseekers who have been NEET for 26 weeks have received early entry to the additional support available through the New Deal.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many officials of each grade in his Department visited the Maldives (a) in 2008 and (b) 2009 to date. [289621]
Mr. McFadden: There were no visits to the Maldives by officials of the Department, either during 2008 or during 2009 to date.
All travel is undertaken in accordance with the Civil Service Code and Civil Service Management Code. In BIS the criteria for booking travel is value for money based on cost and convenience.
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent progress he has made in evaluating the effectiveness of the work of the sector skills councils. [290147]
Kevin Brennan:
All 25 Sector Skills Councils are currently undergoing a robust and rigorous re-licensing assessment, in order to ensure they are as effective as possible. For each SSC there will be a detailed report by the National Audit Office and an overall assessment by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills. The assessment tests the performance of SSCs against four key themes: that the organisation is well run; is able to deliver core products and services; is able to deliver
sector specific solutions in line with employer demand; and, is making progress in achieving results and impacts. Eight of the initial 10 SSCs assessed have achieved the standard to be re-licensed by Government. Further announcements on the performance of SSCs are taking place before the end of the year. All of these SSC reports and assessments are in the public domain on the UK Commission website. In addition, the UK Commission is implementing a new performance framework for SSCs.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to answer question (a) (i) 252245, (ii) 252243 and (iii) 252242 on the Working Capital and Enterprise Finance Guarantee schemes and (iv) 252241, on the Capital for Enterprise Fund tabled on 23 January 2009 and (b) (A) 261653, on the Working Capital Scheme, (B) 261624, on loans from the European Investment Bank, (C) 261512, on regional development agencies and (D) 261487, on contracts with banks, tabled on 3 March 2009. [268313]
Mr. McFadden [holding answer 1 April 2009]: Questions 252243 and 252245 were answered by my right hon. Friend the Minister for Regional Economic Development and Co-ordination on 3 July 2009, Official Report, column 430W.
Question 252242 was answered by my hon. Friend, the then Minister for Economics and Business on 27 April 2009, Official Report, column 1060W.
Question 252241 was answered by my hon. Friend, the then Minister for Economics and Business on 28 April 2009, Official Report, column 1271W.
Question 261653 was answered by my right hon. Friend the Minister for Regional Economic Development and Co-ordination on 16 September 2009, Official Report, column 2192W.
Question 261624 was answered by my hon. Friend, the then Minister for Economics and Business on 2 April 2009, Official Report, column 1446W.
I answered question 261512 on 2 April 2009, Official Report, column 1447W, and question 261487 on 8 June 2009, Official Report, column 762W.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to answer question 280004, tabled on 10 June 2009, on the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme. [281284]
Ms Rosie Winterton: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by the Minister for Further Education, Skills, Apprenticeships and Consumer Affairs on 16 September 2009, Official Report, column 2199W.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to answer question 241954, on Government departments: information communications technology, tabled to the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills on 4 December 2008. [289453]
Mr. McFadden: I apologise for the delay in replying to the hon. Member, which was due to administrative error in the Department.
To help defend against electronic attack, it is standard good information security practice for corporate IT systems, not to publish internal IP addresses. When accessing internet websites, the IP addresses of all of the computers on the Department internal office IT system are hidden behind the following IP addresses which are publicly available: 164.36.50.240, 164.36.50.240 and 164.36.50.217.
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he will reply to Question 281131, tabled on 15 June 2009, on a reply to correspondence on banks. [289947]
Mr. McFadden: I replied to the hon. Member on 21 September. I apologise for the delay in responding.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he expects to answer question (a) 279301, (b) 279302 and (c) 279303, on the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme, tabled on 9 June 2009. [290211]
Ms Rosie Winterton: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to question 279301 on 20 July 2009, Official Report, column 1104W.
I refer the hon. Member to the answers my hon. Friend the Minister for Further Education, Skills, Apprenticeships and Consumer Affairs gave to questions 279302 and 279303 on 9 September 2009, Official Report, column 2059W.
Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of progress in using NHS numbers as a national unique patient identifier in respect of abortion operations; what proportion of such operations performed in the last 12 months were assigned an NHS number; whether that proportion has increased since September 2008; and whether the requirement to use NHS numbers in such operations from 18 September 2009 applies to independent clinics who perform abortions under NHS contract. [290273]
Gillian Merron: This information is not collected centrally. The Department currently has no plans to use national health service numbers as a unique patient identifier in respect of abortion operations.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many repeat abortions there were in each primary care trust area in each of the last five years. [291583]
Gillian Merron: The information requested has been placed in the Library.
Jo Swinson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 2 July 2009, Official Report, column 388W, on meeting dates, when his Department
plans to respond to the emails from the National Allergy Strategy Group of 28 May, 4 June, 19 June and 6 July 2009. [289173]
Ann Keen: The Department cannot find any record of receiving e-mails from the National Allergy Strategy Group (NASG) on 28 May, 4 June or 6 July, although we are aware that the group have requested a meeting. The Private Office of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health has previously attempted to contact Mandy East, chair of the NASG and been unsuccessful. However, contact has recently been made and a meeting has been organised for 15 October 2009.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of (a) primary and (b) secondary care consultations for rheumatoid arthritis in the latest year for which figures are available; and at what average cost. [289458]
Ann Keen: We have made no estimate of the number, and cost, of primary and secondary consultations for rheumatoid arthritis.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the cost of rheumatoid arthritis to (a) the NHS and (b) the social care system in the latest year for which figures are available. [289566]
Ann Keen: We have made no estimate of the cost of rheumatoid arthritis to the national health service and social care system.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the incidence of male breast cancer is in each primary care trust area. [290207]
Angela E. Smith: I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what the incidence of male breast cancer is in each primary care trust area [290207].
The latest available figures for newly diagnosed cases of cancer (incidence) are for the year 2006. There were 275 newly diagnosed cases of breast cancer in males in England in 2006.
Figures are not released for all individual primary care trust areas due to small numbers. Table 1 shows primary care trust areas with three or more newly diagnosed cases of male breast cancer in 2006. There were fewer than three cases in each of the remaining 108 primary care trust areas.
| Table 1: Registrations of newly diagnosed cases of male breast cancer( 1) by strategic health authority and primary care trust( 2) | |
| 2006 | |
| (1 )Breast cancer is coded to C50 in the International Classification of Diseases Tenth Revision (ICD-10). (2 )Based on boundaries as of 2008. Due to small numbers only primary care trusts with three or more newly diagnosed cases are included. Source: Office for National Statistics. | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 687W—continued
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health where each burns unit in England is located; and how many (a) adults and (b) children with each category of burn each unit treated in each of the last three years. [289454]
Phil Hope: Tables which provide a breakdown of burn injury by strategic health authority, for the years 2005-06 to 2007-08 for adults and children have been placed in the Library.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will provide patients receiving treatment for cancers with (a) dental and (b) eye care fee exemptions; and if he will make a statement. [289563]
Phil Hope: We have no current plans to extend the exemption arrangements for national health service dental charges or the eligibility criteria for free NHS sight tests.
Patients do not have to pay for NHS dental treatment if they receive treatment from a hospital dentist as an in-patient or attend as a hospital dental service outpatient, although they may have to pay for any dentures or bridges supplied. Children, pregnant and nursing mothers, adults on certain income-related benefits, and adults who qualify for full assistance under the NHS low income scheme may also receive free treatment if attending an NHS primary care dentist.
No NHS charges apply to patients attending a hospital eye department for the investigation or management of an eye condition. In addition, free NHS sight tests are available from primary care optometrists to a wide range of patients. These include children, people aged 60 and over, people with glaucoma or diabetes or who are at risk of glaucoma, people registered as sight-impaired or blind or who need complex lenses, and adults on certain income-related benefits or who qualify for full assistance under the NHS low income scheme. Private sight tests are widely available for other adults not eligible for an NHS sight test.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate has been made of the number of cardiovascular screening checks undertaken by each primary care trust since 1 April 2009; and if he will make a statement. [291615]
Phil Hope: Information in the form requested is not collected centrally. However, we expect that around one million people will be offered an NHS health check by the end of March 2010.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the Government’s response to the Royal Commission on Long-Term Care, Cm 4818-II, page 8, in which years the Government’s investment would fund the cost of the Royal Commission's recommendation; what research his Department has commissioned to ascertain how much money goes to supporting older people in residential homes; and what recent estimates he has made of the average annual cost to his Department of supporting older people in residential care. [290280]
Phil Hope: The Government accepted each of the Royal Commission on Long Term Care’s recommendations except the recommendation to provide free personal care. Making personal care free for everyone carries a very substantial cost: the estimated cost is some £1.5 billion in 2003-04 rising to £2.65 billion in 2010-11.
The NHS Information Centre for health and social care publishes annually data on councils’ expenditure on residential care for older people. The latest data are £4,740 million gross or £3,340 million net of user charges for 2007-08.
The Department commissioned the Personal Social Services Research Unit (PSSRU) at the London School of Economics to make projections of expenditure on long-term care for older people in England. In a joint study with the Universities of Essex and Birmingham, funded by the Nuffield Foundation, they estimated that the introduction of free personal care could cost between £1.3 billion and £1.8 billion or more in 2002—PSSRU Research Summary 40, available at:
www.pssru.ac.uk/researchsummaries.php
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to publish a response to his Department's consultation on ordinary residence guidance. [290393]
Phil Hope: The response to the ordinary residence guidance consultation is expected to be published in the winter.
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the median quality rating for (a) local authority provision, (b) voluntary provision, (c) private provision and (d) NHS provision of residential care home placements for adults aged under 65 years with learning disabilities in each (i) region and (ii) local authority area was in each of the last five years. [290245]
Phil Hope: The quality or “star” rating system for social care providers was introduced by the then regulator of social care, the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) in May 2008. For this reason, the information requested is not available for each of the last five years.
Information on average quality ratings of care homes for younger adults with provision for people with learning disabilities, as at 8 August 2008 and 28 July 2009, has been provided by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), which took over the responsibilities of CSCI on 1 April 2009. This information has been placed in the Library.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to enable carers to (a) attend general practitioner consultations with those for who they care and (b) speak to general practitioners on behalf of such persons. [290392]
Phil Hope: The Government have no current plans to change the arrangements for carers attending general practitioner (GP) consultations with, or speaking to GPs on behalf of, those for whom they care.
The Mental Capacity Act 2005 enshrines in statute a presumption that every adult has the capacity to make his or her own decisions. It is for individuals with capacity, who have carers, to decide whether they want their carer to attend a GP consultation or to speak to a GP on their behalf.
Where a person does not have capacity to make such a decision, the Mental Capacity Act will come into effect. Those caring for the person may need to attend the GP consultation and/or speak to the GP on behalf of the person lacking capacity. Where they do so, the GP has no new obligation to share confidential information with the carer so will need to exercise his or her judgment as to what information they need to share if any about the health care needs of the person they are caring for.
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps his Department is taking to increase awareness of cervical cancer symptoms by public healthcare professionals; [291468]
(2) if he will make it his policy to lower the cervical cancer screening age to 20 years. [291471]
Phil Hope: Through the National Awareness and Early Diagnosis Initiative, we are making the public and health care professionals more aware of the signs and symptoms of cancer, including cervical cancer and encouraging those who may have symptoms to seek advice earlier. We have allocated £5 million to the national health service to support cancer networks and primary care trusts in implementing services that will improve awareness of cancers and promote early diagnosis.
A national audit in primary care of all patients diagnosed with cancer is being undertaken in collaboration with the Royal College of Practitioners and the National Patient Safety Agency. Findings from the audit will be used to make decisions about how best to provide more support to general practitioners and other primary care professionals to ensure early diagnosis of cancer.
We have set up a working group to produce a new guideline to assist general practitioners in the management of young women who present in primary care with gynaecological symptoms. The aim is to issue the guideline before the end of the year.
We are also preparing key messages on cervical cancer for members of the public. The first draft is currently being reviewed by an expert group of stakeholders, and our plans are to launch these before the end of the year. These will go on to NHS Choices and stakeholder websites, and stakeholders will be encouraged to use them in a variety of ways to raise awareness.
The independent Advisory Committee on Cervical Screening (ACCS) at its formal review in May agreed unanimously that there should be no change in the current policy in England of starting cervical screening at 25 years. However, the cervical screening age range will be a standing item on the agenda of meetings of the ACCS, which reviews all new research to assess its significance to the cervical screening programme.
NHS cancer screening programmes maintain an on-line database of literature relating to cervical screening, and publish ‘Cervical Screening: Literature Update’ twice a year. If further evidence is published that warrants another formal review of the screening age range, this will be done.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding has been provided by each health trust for safeguarding of children in 2009-10; and if he will make a statement. [291616]
Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many requests for coeliac disease antibody tests NHS pathology laboratories have received in the last five years; [292019]
(2) on how many occasions the NHS has taken a biopsy from a patient in order to confirm a suspected diagnosis of coeliac disease in the last five years. [292020]
Phil Hope: The information requested is not collected centrally.
David Tredinnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will commission a study in England with equivalent terms of reference to the Get Well UK pilot study of use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine carried out with Government funding in Northern Ireland in 2007-08; what assessment he has made of the cost effectiveness of allowing GPs to refer patients to complementary and alternative health practitioners; and if he will make a statement. [289640]
Gillian Merron: The Department is currently considering the findings of the complementary and alternative medicine pilot study which took place in Northern Ireland. It is for local practitioners to decide whether to refer patients for specific therapies. One factor that they will wish to take account of is clinical and cost-effectiveness. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence is responsible for assessing clinical and cost-effectiveness and can look at this in relation to specific complementary and alternative therapies, which have an evidence base, in the context of specific clinical guidelines.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the Government's response to the Royal Commission on Long-Term Care, Cm 4818-II, page 10, whether approval was given to a national survey to monitor trends in health expectancy. [290278]
Phil Hope: The English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) began in March 2002, funded jointly by Her Majesty's Government and the United States National Institute of Ageing. The Government hope shortly to finalise arrangements to extend the survey for a further five years. The ELSA data can be used to estimate health expectancy in England at older ages.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) regularly produce and publish national estimates of health expectancy at birth and at age 65, using data from the General Household Survey. The most recent estimates are published in Health Statistics Quarterly), winter 2008 (p77), available on the ONS website:
www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=6725
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what measures the £26.8 million allocated for the improvement for young people’s access to contraception in February 2008 has been spent; and if he will make a statement. [291582]
Gillian Merron: A total of £26.8 million has been allocated this year to strategic health authorities (SHAs) and primary care trusts (PCTs) to improve women’s knowledge of, and access to the full range of contraception, to help reduce the number of teenage pregnancies and abortions.
It is for SHAs and PCTs to determine how to use this funding most effectively to meet the needs of their local populations. However, officials are working with SHAs to provide advice and spread good practice. Priority areas include encouraging innovation and providing sustainable services to ensure equitable access to all methods of contraception including long acting reversible (LARC) methods. Guidance from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence highlighted that the national health service could save around £100 million through reducing unintended pregnancies if women switched to LARC.
In addition, each SHA will also receive an additional £250,000 to pump-prime the provision of information technology in community contraception services.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to publish his Department's review of the use of anti-psychotic medicine for dementia treatment. [290387]
Phil Hope: The review of the use of anti psychotic medicine for dementia treatment will be published shortly.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department spent on the Dental Access programme in the latest period for which figures are available; and how many staff the programme employs. [289996]
Phil Hope: In 2008-09, the Department spent an estimated £125,000 on commissioning specialist consultancy to support the new Dental Access programme. Precise costs and headcount figures are not available because some of the consultants supported a range of activities in which the Dental Access programme was only one element. Input from departmental staff to support the programme has been provided from within existing departmental resources at no additional cost to the Department.
The Dental Access programme is providing on-going support to strategic health authorities and primary care trusts to help them improve access to NHS dental services and make the most effective use of the extra national health service funding, now totalling more than £2.25 billion, made available for primary dental care services. Information on expenditure on the Dental Access programme in 2009-10 will be available after the year end.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate he has made of the cost of implementing the six medium-term actions referred to in chapter seven of the Independent review of NHS dental services in England; [290345]
(2) with reference to page 88 of Chapter 7 of the Independent Review of NHS Dental Services in England, what recent estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of implementing the four longer-term aims identified by the Review; [290490]
(3) with reference to page 84 of Chapter 7 of the Independent Review of NHS Dental Services in England, whether he has estimated the cost of implementing the seven immediate priorities identified by the Review. [290493]
Phil Hope: Work has begun to estimate these costs. Funding has been identified for the implementation of the seven immediate priorities and to determine the costs of the medium and longer term priorities.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions his Department has had with the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence on standards of dental services in the last 12 months. [290346]
Phil Hope: We have had no such discussions.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on how many occasions (a) he, (b) his predecessor, (c) other Ministers in his Department and (d) Departmental officials met Professor Jimmy Steele and the Dental Review Team between the dates of the (i) announcement and (ii) publication of the independent review of NHS dental services in England. [290347]
Ann Keen: As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government’s practice to provide details of all such meetings. Professor Steele met a wide range of stakeholders as part of his independent review and these are listed in an annex to his review. This has been placed in the Library and is also available on the Department’s website at:
12 Oct 2009 : Column 693W—continued
www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_101137
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has spent on its review of the dental public health workforce; and if he will make a statement. [290349]
Phil Hope: Officials with policy responsibilities for oral health and dental education within the chief dental officer’s team are leading on the review with the help of an external consultant. As at July 2009, the consultant’s fees and the costs of providing accommodation and services for meetings amounted to a total of approximately £43,000. Estimating and costing the proportion of the time, which officials have devoted to the review within their other duties, could be undertaken only at disproportionate cost.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects the review of the dental public health workforce commissioned by his Department to be published; and if he will make a statement. [290350]
Phil Hope: We hope to publish the report of the review by the end of the year. It has taken longer than expected because of the need to take account of helpful recommendations in the report of the Independent Review of National Health Service dental services in England led by Professor Jimmy Steele. The continuing development of the World Class Commissioning initiative, which is intended to ensure that the health and care services provided by the NHS effectively meet the needs of the population, is also relevant to this review.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) with reference to page 88 of Chapter 7 of the Independent Review of NHS Dental Services in England, which of the four longer-term aims identified by the Review his Department has accepted; and what mechanism his Department has put in place for implementation in each such case; [290491]
(2) which of the medium-term actions identified by the Review his Department has accepted; and what mechanism his Department has put in place for implementation in each such case; [290492]
(3) with reference to page 87 of the Independent Review of NHS Dental Services in England, which of the seven immediate priorities identified by the Review his Department has accepted; and what steps his Department has taken towards implementation in each such case. [290495]
Phil Hope: The Government have accepted all the recommendations of the review in principle, subject to working through the detail of their financial implications and the outcome of piloting. The report recognises the more difficult future fiscal environment, and rightly puts an emphasis on piloting, cost containment and more efficient ways of working.
Work has begun to implement the seven immediate priorities identified, and a programme is being developed to take forward the implementation of the other recommendations, and the contract pilots.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to Chapter 7 of the Independent Review of NHS Dental Services in England, whether his Department has identified separate funding streams in respect of the (a) immediate priorities, (b) medium-term actions and (c) longer-term aims identified in the Review. [290494]
Phil Hope: Funding has been identified for this year for the immediate priorities. Budget plans for 2010-11 are still being finalised.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to develop an IT plan for NHS dentistry; and if he will make a statement. [290455]
Phil Hope: The report of the Independent Review of NHS Dental Services in England, led by Professor Jimmy Steele, recommend that there should be a formal national information technology (IT) strategy for NHS dentistry, aiming to link all dentists to the wider NHS within five years. We have accepted the recommendations of the report in principle, but any decision on an IT plan would need to be subject to a full appraisal of cost and the wider financial context.
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department spent on newspaper advertising carried in each newspaper in the most recent year for which figures are available. [289506]
Phil Hope: The following table provides a breakdown of the Department’s expenditure through the Central Office of Information (COI) on advertising in each national newspaper for the 2008-09 financial year.
To identify the amount of expenditure by the Department in each regional newspaper would incur a disproportionate cost.
| National press | 1 April 2008-31 March 2009 (£) |
| Ethnic press | 1 April 2008-31 March 2009 |
| Notes: 1. All figures above exclude VAT. All figures exclude advertising rebates and audit adjustments and therefore may differ from COI official turnover figures. 2. Advertising spend is defined as covering only media spend (inclusive of agency commissions but excluding production costs, COI commission and VAT). 3. These figures do not include the Department’s recruitment/classified advertising costs. 4. These figures may include occasional minor spend through COI by national health service organisations, to supplement national campaigns in their area. While this expenditure has been excluded as far as possible, it would incur disproportionate cost to validate that every item of NHS expenditure has been removed. | |
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on which initiatives of his Department and its agencies expenditure on advertising has been incurred in each of the last five years; how much was spent on each such initiative; and which such initiatives were offered for tender through the Central Office of Information. [292527]
Phil Hope: The following table shows the Department's advertising expenditure over the last five completed financial years. A further breakdown of these figures is available in the Library.
All departmental advertising listed as follows was carried out via the Central Office of Information (COI), with the exception of those initiatives highlighted with an asterisk. To identify other ad hoc expenditure not carried out via the COI would incur disproportionate cost.
| Department of Health advertising spend( 1) in 2004-05 to 2008-09 | |||||
| £ million | |||||
| Campaign | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09( 2) |
| (1) Advertising spend is defined as covering only media spend (inclusive of agency commissions but excluding production costs, COI commission and VAT). All figures exclude advertising rebates and audit adjustments and therefore may differ from COI official turnover figures. All figures are rounded to the nearest £10,000. These figures do not include departmental recruitment/classified advertising costs and ad hoc spend under £10,000. These figures may include occasional minor spend through COI by NHS organisations, to supplement national campaigns in their area. While this expenditure has been excluded as far as possible so that this chart reflects central departmental spend, it would incur disproportionate cost to validate that every item of NHS expenditure has been removed. (2) Provisional figures. (3) From 2006-07 Department of Health contribution to campaign run jointly with Home Office. (4) Department of Health contribution to campaign run jointly with Home Office | |||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 696W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff have (a) been dismissed and (b) had their contract terminated by his Department in each of the last five years; what the reason was in each case; and what the severance costs in relation to (i) dismissal and (ii) contract termination were in each such year. [290443]
Phil Hope: In each of the last five years, less than five individuals have been dismissed from the core Department.
In each of the last five years, less than five non-permanent workers have been terminated for reasons other than the completion of the work under their contract.
Exact figures are not provided and related information suppressed on confidentiality grounds.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what flexi-time arrangements were available to staff within the Department in each of the last five years; and how many staff participated in such arrangements in each such year. [290445]
Phil Hope: The Department recognises that flexible working allows staff to combine employment and a career with other responsibilities as well as meeting personal needs. The Department encourages staff to work flexibly through providing opportunities such as part-time working, job sharing, term-time only working and the use of flexitime. It also provides the technology to allow staff to work at home on occasions and has in place specific arrangements to allow parents, adopters, guardians and foster carers of children under 16 (or disabled children under 18) to apply to work flexibly.
Most staff participate in the flexitime work arrangement. The Department also encourages other flexible arrangements such as spreading working hours over nine days within a fortnight or four days within a week.
Managers have the discretion to agree flexible working arrangements locally, without making contractual changes. These local arrangements are not recorded centrally so the numbers of staff working flexibly is not available, but is likely to be a large proportion of the work force.
In our last submission to Office of National Statistics (1 April 2009) we had 201 staff working part-time, based on those arrangements where contractual changes were agreed centrally. Of those, six had job-share arrangements and five were working term-time. Prior to July 2008 this information was not held centrally.
www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=2899
There are details of full- and part-time employees in the Department.
From 16 June 2009 civil servants hoping to find a job-share partner can now use a new online job-sharing board to help match them with a suitable person. This can be found at:
www.civilservice.gov.uk/news/2009/june/job-share.aspx
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what IT systems have been in development for use within his Department in the last five years; what the reason for the development of each system was; how much has been spent on the development of each system; and which systems have been subsequently (a) implemented, (b) terminated prior to implementation and (c) terminated following implementation. [290439]
Phil Hope: This information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate he has made of the average length of employment of staff of his Department at each Civil Service payband. [290441]
Phil Hope: The average length of employment in the Department for each grade are presented in the following table.
| Grade | Average length of service (years) |
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the answer of 26 November 2008, Official Report, column 2061W, on departmental marketing, how many staff in his Department are responsible for branding activity; and what the cost of employing such staff was in 2008-09. [290214]
Phil Hope: In the 2008-09 budget year three staff were employed to work on branding.
The cost of employing branding staff during this period was £141,752.
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department spent on hire vehicles in each of the last five financial years. [291612]
Phil Hope: Figures for car hire expenditure booked through our car hire contract company Arval are only available for the last two years.
| Car hire expenditure (£) | |
The previous car hire contract expired in May 2006 and figures for previous years are not easily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many properties owned by the Department were liable for payment of (a) business rates and (b) empty property rates in each of the last five years; and what the liability of each was in each such year. [290446]
Phil Hope: The information requested is provided as follows.
The Department has occupied two freehold properties for which business rates are paid during the five-year period.
Information in relation to empty business rates is not readily available other than for the last two years.
| Business rates | Empty business rates | |||
| Number of Properties | Cost (£) | Number of Properties | Cost (£) | |
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff took paternity leave from his Department in each of the last five years; and what the average duration of such leave has been. [290444]
Phil Hope: The figures for the number of staff taking paternity leave are only available from the implementation of the Department's Business Management System on 1 July 2008. Prior to that date information is only be available from hard-copy files and so it would incur disproportionate costs to establish that information. Our records show that the number of staff taking paternity leave in 2008 was nine, and so far this year (2009) the number has been five. The average length of paternity leave taken was 14 days.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to publish the responses to his Department's consultation on its Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673. [290395]
Phil Hope: The Green Paper consultation closes on 13 November 2009. The Government’s response to the consultation will be published after this date.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which (a) individuals and (b) organisations he consulted on his proposals to (i) give 350,000 people free personal home care, (ii) provide patients with access to cancer diagnostics within one week of concerns being raised and (iii) provide free parking for hospital in-patients. [292535]
Andy Burnham: The Department and Ministers engage continuously with key stakeholders across all policy areas and through this process can identify key issues and develop proposals to address them.
Such engagement and consultation with individuals and groups with an interest in these proposals will continue as we work with them towards their implementation.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which Minister in his Department has been assigned responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money in his Department; whether his Department has established a public sector reform team to implement service reforms; and if he will make a statement. [289739]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: I am the Department of Health Minister with responsibility for overseeing the delivery of value for money. The Department has not created a new single public sector reform team because directorates within the Department lead on different elements of service reform.
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on whether funding presently allocated to his Department is to be re-allocated to the Department for Communities and Local Government to help implement the housing policies announced in the Draft Legislative Programme for 2009-10. [290487]
Phil Hope: The Secretary of State for Health discussed the Department of Health’s contribution to the housing policies announced in the Draft Legislative Programme with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, as part of the process of publishing Building Britain’s Future.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the Prime Minister’s announcement of 29 June 2009 on provision of social housing, whether funds from underspends in his Department’s budget will be re-allocated to social housing initiatives. [291877]
Mr. Byrne: I have been asked to reply.
I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave on 21 July 2009, Official Report, column 1352W.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the reasons are for the time taken to publish the National Programme Budgeting data for 2007-08. [291878]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: I am told that the time taken to publish the 2007-08 programme budgeting data was due to a new data collection mechanism for both the reference cost data (which are used as part of the programme budgeting calculations) and the programme budgeting data. In addition, due to a change in the programme budgeting data collection methodology, additional validation work was undertaken to estimate expenditure levels per programme without methodological changes.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 1 July 2009, Official Report, columns 350-1W, on parliamentary bulletins, what amendment was requested to the first edition of Westminster; for what reason a reference to the remuneration of the Chair of the Appointments Commission was removed; and what the Chair's remuneration is. [289693]
Phil Hope:
The Appointments Commission had planned to include an article on the remuneration of Chairs in the first edition of the ‘Westminster’ bulletin. During discussions on the draft, departmental officials suggested that the article might raise expectations of Chairs of national health service organisations about the Secretary of State's discretion when deciding remuneration increases, within the framework of the Public Sector Pay Committee's
decisions, which were not correct. The Appointments Commission, who have editorial control, made a decision to replace the article.
The planned article was about Chairs' remuneration in general. It did not refer to the remuneration of the chair of the Appointments Commission specifically, and no such reference was removed from Westminster Bulletin.
Remuneration for the Chair of the Appointments Commission is in the range of £45,000-50,000 as published in the Appointments Commission's latest Annual Report and Accounts (2008-09). This can be found on their website:
12 Oct 2009 : Column 701W—continued
www.appointments.org.uk/publications.asp
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost of producing his Department’s publication Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, was; what the cost of obtaining pictures for the publication was; and from where the pictures were obtained. [290101]
Phil Hope: The production cost of the Green Paper “Shaping the Future of Care Together” was £68,451. The cost of obtaining pictures for the publication, which will also be used for The Big Care Debate, was £6,580. These were sourced from the national health service photo library, as well as from private image library banks.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department’s Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 27, whether his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated research to update the figures provided by the study on Lifetime risk of entering residential or nursing home care in England. [290120]
Phil Hope: Research commissioned by the Department and carried out by the personal social services research unit (PSSRU) “Analysing the costs and benefits of social care funding arrangements in England: technical report, Julien Forder and José-Luis Fernández, 2009, PSSRU Discussion Paper 2644” looks at the lifetime probability of needing care and the cost of this care. This includes residential home care.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department’s Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 19, what data modelling of a universal deferred payment mechanism his Department has undertaken; what estimate he has made of the inflationary costs of such a mechanism; what estimate he has made of the likely default rate under such a mechanism; and how his Department would finance such a mechanism. [290121]
Phil Hope:
At present, local authorities that choose to can offer individuals to pay for their care through a deferred payments scheme. However, this option is not currently available to all—approximately 30 local authorities do not offer deferred payments to people entering residential care. The Green Paper proposes making the scheme available to all who wish to use it. Further detail on the assumptions made underpinning this proposal can be found in the Impact Assessment. The detailed design of
the system, exactly how it would operate and the precise costs will be finalised once there is consensus about the preferred funding option, since the choice of funding option is likely to influence the cost of the deferred payment scheme.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department’s Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 123, if he will place in the Library a copy of the data modelling for the (a) comprehensive and (b) partnership model. [290122]
Phil Hope: A summary of the costs and benefits for the comprehensive and partnership funding models are available in the regulatory impact assessment for the Green Paper, Shaping the Future of Care Together. This has been placed in the Library, and can be seen at:
http://careandsupport.direct.gov.uk/greenpaper/the-green-paper-and-supporting-documents/
A summary of the model from which these costs are derived has been placed in the Library, and can be seen at:
http://www.pssru.ac.uk/pdf/dp2644.pdf
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether each of the models referred to in his Department’s Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 123, is to be used in the funding of (a) domiciliary, (b) residential and (c) domiciliary and residential care. [290123]
Phil Hope: All of the funding options cover the costs of care. The costs of care include services in both domiciliary and residential care.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department’s Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 42, what assumptions were made on the level of state funding in each year to 2025. [290179]
Phil Hope: The Green Paper Shaping the Future of Care Together does not make any commitments about the level of state funding for adult social care in the future. This will be a matter for future spending reviews.
The net cost to the state of each of the Green Paper funding options has been estimated for 2014 and 2026. This is given in the regulatory impact assessment (RIA) for the Care and Support Green Paper which is has already been placed in the Library, or can be seen at:
http://careandsupport.direct.gov.uk/greenpaper/the-green-paper-and-supporting-documents/
In order to produce these projections of likely cost it was necessary to make a series of assumptions for modelling purposes, including illustrative assumptions around levels of funding. The purpose of these projections is to provide early indicative costs to allow comparison between funding options: they are not intended to be a projection of actual future funding. The actual costs of the different models could alter substantially following decisions about precisely how the funding options are implemented, as well as by future public spending and prioritisation decisions.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department’s Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 126, what definition his Department uses of a consensus across society; and what mechanisms he plans to use to determine the extent of such a consensus. [290180]
Phil Hope: The new National Care Service will affect every adult in England, whether people use the system themselves, have family members who need support, or are taxpayers. It is vital that everybody gets involved in the Big Care Debate to have their say on the future direction of the new care and support system.
The Big Care Debate is one of the biggest consultations ever conducted by Government to find out the views of the public. We are reaching out to people in an unprecedented number of ways, through stakeholder events in every region in England, public road shows, leaflets, questionnaires and postcards, a dedicated website, outreach in general practitioner surgeries, universities and other locations and using new digital media including Facebook and Twitter.
The consultation closes on 13 November 2009 and we will be looking closely at all the responses to identify what national consensus has formed around the options in “Shaping the Future of Care Together”, a copy of which is available in the Library.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department’s Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 112, how many more people born with care and support needs would qualify for free care under the partnership element than qualify under his Department’s current policies; and what estimate he has made of the cost of providing care for people who would qualify for all their care free under that element. [290181]
Phil Hope: We do not have an exact estimate of the number of people born with care and support needs who would qualify for free care under the partnership funding option outlined in the Green Paper “Shaping the Future of Care Together”. However, it is likely to be very similar to the number of people born with a disability who receive entirely free care under the present system of care and support.
This is because currently, the majority of individuals who are born with a disability and who are entitled to state support receive their care free of charge because they tend not to have the opportunity to accumulate assets and they tend not to be in employment. This would also be the case under the partnership system.
The Personal Social Services Research Unit estimate that cost of providing care for people who would qualify for all their care free under the partnership funding option in 2009 would be £9.8 billion.
From the modelling results, the total cost of providing care to those who would qualify for all their care free under the partnership system can be approximated as the sum of the care costs for younger adults, since most will receive it for free, and the cost for the minority of older people who would receive their care entirely for free.
Currently, this would amount to £4.7 billion for younger disabled people (younger physically disabled and people with learning disability) and £5.1 billion for older people, giving a total cost of £9.8 billion.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department's Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 77, what assessment he has made of the reasons for which there is little solid evidence about what prevention methods work best. [290182]
Phil Hope: Robust evidence that specifically examines the cost effectiveness of prevention interventions is limited. This is owing to the long time scales involved—the impact of an intervention may not be felt for many years—and the difficulty of establishing causality. In “Securing Good Care for Older People” Derek Wanless found that it can be difficult to make quantitative assessments due to the complex nature of prevention. This is because
“even when using a very narrow specific target such as reducing the number of falls in a locality, determining cost-effectiveness is not straightforward...[as] there may be numerous factors at play (for example new transport facilities).”
The Department is funding 29 local authority-led partnerships to take part in Partnership for Older People Projects (POPPs) across England. These partnerships include social care, health and third sector members, and aim to create a sustainable shift in resources and culture, moving away from institutional and hospital-based crisis care towards earlier and better-targeted interventions for older people within community settings. The pilots cover a wide range of activity to meet low to high levels of need. The final evaluation for these projects is expected in autumn 2009.
The relative lack of quantitative evidence should not stop prevention pilots being trialled. There is a great deal of qualitative evidence for the value placed on lower-level services by older people in helping them to maintain their independence. That is why existing and new prevention and early intervention schemes funded by the Government build evaluations into their projects.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department’s Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 40, if he will place in the Library a copy of HM Treasury’s fiscal projections for the costs of long-term care. [290183]
Phil Hope: HM Treasury’s long-term fiscal projections show that the costs of long term care are set to increase by 17 per cent. by 2027-28, from 1.2 per cent. of gross domestic product in 2007-08 to 1.4 per cent. in 2027-28. These projections are contained in the published “Long-term public finance report”, HM Treasury, March 2008.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department’s Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 38, whether the statistics on life expectancy for children born with Down’s syndrome are based on research undertaken in (a) the UK and (b) the US. [290184]
Phil Hope: The increase in life expectancy for people with Down’s syndrome quoted in the Green Paper Shaping the Future of Care Together, Cm 7673, page 38 is based on American research.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department's Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 14, what data were used to calculate figures on the cost of care; and if he will place in the Library a copy of those data. [290185]
Phil Hope: The information on the lifetime costs of care for those aged over 65 sited on page 14 of the Green Paper Shaping the Future of Care Together is taken from section 5.1.2 Lifetime risks and costs in the Personal Social Services Research Unit (PSSRU) technical report into Analysing the Costs and Benefits of Social Care Funding Arrangements in England.
A copy of the report has been placed in the Library, and is available on PSSRU's website at:
www.pssru.ac.uk/pdf/dp2644.pdf
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department's Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 12, when he plans to publish the action plan on workforce development. [290186]
Phil Hope: The Department is currently working closely with our key partners in the social care sector to develop an action plan for the development of the adult social care workforce of the future.
The Department aims to publish this plan this autumn.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department's Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 10, what the earliest date is on which each of the six proposals could be implemented. [290187]
Phil Hope: The consultation on the Green Paper will last until 13 November 2009. Once the consultation has been completed, these responses will be used to inform and finalise our proposals. We will then publish a White Paper on care and support in 2010.
Work on many of the areas highlighted in the Green Paper is already underway through the Putting People First programme.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library copies of the results of the (a) polling and (b) focus group work conducted in relation to his Department's Green Paper, Shaping the Future of Care Together, Cm 7673. [290386]
Phil Hope: “The Case for Change—Why England needs a new care and support system: Engagement Findings” has already been placed in the Library.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) young adults with disabilities, including learning disabilities and (b) other people he consulted in the preparation of his Department's Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673. [290397]
Phil Hope:
The ‘Care Support Independence’ engagement process took place between May and November 2008 to give a cross-section of the public and key stakeholders
the opportunity to debate the principles that should underpin the future of the care and support system for all adults.
Over the course of the engagement, a total of 1,092 stakeholders and citizens attended 15 deliberative events held across all English regions. A further 97 people were interviewed either individually or in mini-groups. 1,449 separate communications were received through the dedicated website and by letter and email. Inclusivity research with 11 specific groups of citizens engaged in an appropriate and accessible way with people for whom the deliberative events might not be suitable. These included young adults and people with learning disabilities, physical impairments, those living in rural areas, Gypsies and Travellers, ex-offenders and people for whom English was not their first language.
On publication of the Green Paper on 14 July 2009, a wide ranging consultation process was launched to encourage people to give their views on the proposals and join the Big Care Debate. This consultation closes on 13 November 2009.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department's Green Paper on Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 10, what estimate he has made of the cost of the proposed six week re-ablement plan; what steps he plans to take to (a) promote telecare and (b) make information available on prevention and early intervention as part of his proposals on the care and support system; and what estimate he has made of the cost of taking such steps. [290519]
Phil Hope: While re-ablement is, hour for hour, more expensive than home care, many people do not need an ongoing home care package after a few weeks of re-ablement. A re-ablement package would typically pay for itself if a re-ablement user continued not to need ongoing care for around five to seven months, where they would otherwise have required a typical care package.
Using a high estimate that it would cost £1,000 per re-ablement package, we believe it would be possible to offer re-ablement to people leaving hospital who would qualify for care and support from the state for the first time, subject to future funding decisions.
The consultation on the Green Paper will last until 13 November 2009. Once the consultation has been completed, these responses will be used to inform and finalise our proposals, including those on the promotion of telecare and making information available about prevention and early intervention. We will then publish a White Paper on care and support in 2010.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Department's Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, Cm 7673, page 17, what estimate he has made of the level of personal cost at which paying for care is fundamentally unfair. [290520]
Phil Hope:
No estimate has been made of the level of personal cost at which paying for costs is fundamentally unfair since this is likely to differ from one individual to another. However, the Government believe that a system which leaves everyone to pay for themselves with no
state support—what is called in the Green Paper the “Pay for Yourself” option—would be fundamentally unfair because:
Care would be unaffordable for many people. Many people would not be able to afford the costs of private insurance. For those without insurance, the costs of care can be very high: someone who develops dementia could need 10 years of high-level, skilled care in a residential care home, which could carry a price tag of over£250,000;
12 Oct 2009 : Column 707W—continued
This option would have a large negative impact on people on low incomes and with high levels of need, as the group of people who would previously have been eligible for state support and also who are unable to afford the costs of care or insurance themselves; and
Those individuals unable to afford the cost of care would be left without the care they need. This could result in high levels of unmet need in the future, or pressure on friends/families to provide informal care.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what data his Department holds on the level of diversity in its recruitment of employees in each of the last three years. [290507]
Phil Hope: The requested diversity information for previous years can be found in the civil service statistics tables, available from the civil service statistics website at:
www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/who/statistics/index.aspx
www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=2899&Pos=&ColRank=l&Rank=422
The Department monitors diversity data at all stages of the recruitment process to ensure fairness at every point. The Department has a range of measures in place to encourage applicants from under-represented groups, including operating the Guaranteed Interview Scheme for people with disabilities and offering a broad range of flexible working options to all staff.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of his Department’s waste was recycled in the latest period for which figures are available. [289658]
Phil Hope: For 2008-09, 83.47 per cent. of the Department’s waste was recycled.
The information covers the Department’s central administrative estate of Richmond House, Wellington House and Skipton House. The Department is a minor occupier in New Kings Beam House (HM Revenue and Customs) and Quarry House in Leeds (Department for Work and Pensions) and the data for these sites is reported by them.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many sick days were taken by staff of his Department in each of the last five years; and what the cost to the public purse of these absences was. [290440]
Phil Hope: The following table presents the average working days lost per person in the Department for the years available and the associated cost estimates for sickness. The cost estimates for 2007-08 and 2008-09 are not available.
| Average working days lost per person | Cost estimate (£ million) | |
| n/a = not available Note: Cost estimates given are based on information published in the annual civil service sickness absence reports, available on the Cabinet Office website. | ||
The figure for 2004 includes both the core Department and its Agencies: the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency and the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency.
Reporting periods changed from calendar years to financial years between 2005 and 2006.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many external training courses were attended by staff of his Department in the last 12 months; and what the cost was of attendances on each such course. [289703]
Phil Hope: Decisions on external training courses for staff are made locally. The Department does not therefore hold central records of course attendance or the costs involved. To collect such information would incur disproportionate cost.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department spent on (a) car hire, (b) air travel, (c) hotels and (d) restaurant meals for (i) Ministers and (ii) staff of his Department in each of the last five years. [290168]
Phil Hope: Travel by Ministers and civil servants is undertaken in accordance with the “Ministerial Code” and the “Civil Service Management Code” respectively and all expenditure on air and rail travel has to be incurred in accordance with the principles of Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.
The amount spent on these expenses is not easily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
The Cabinet Office publishes an annual list of overseas visits made by Cabinet Ministers costing in excess of £500 dating from 1997 onwards. Details on all Health Ministers overseas travel for 2008-09 can be found on the Cabinet Office website.
www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/propriety_and_ethics/ministers/travel_gifts.aspx
Details of business expenses and hospitality received by departmental senior officials on a quarterly basis will be published in October 2009.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department spent on travel by train for Ministers in each of the last five years. [291489]
Phil Hope: Travel by Ministers is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code and all expenditure on rail travel has to be incurred in accordance with the principles of Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.
The amount spent on rail travel is not easily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what assessment he has made of the effects on the quality of diabetes in primary care trusts of diabetes networks; [291806]
(2) what assessment he has made of the effects of diabetes networks, as defined in the National Service Framework for Diabetes, on patient outcomes for people with diabetes. [291807]
Phil Hope: Diabetes networks, as defined in the Diabetes National Service Framework, can play an important role in driving the delivery of quality of diabetes services, and improving patient outcomes. We are working with NHS Diabetes and Diabetes UK to expand networks across England.
We have not undertaken any formal assessment of the effects on the quality of diabetes in primary care trusts of diabetes networks or the effects of diabetes networks on patient outcomes for people with diabetes.
Mr. Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment has been made of the potential role of community pharmacies in helping to reduce health inequalities for people (a) at risk of and (b) diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. [290004]
Phil Hope: The White Paper, Pharmacy in England: Building on strengths - delivering the future, published in April 2008, is closely aligned with the Government's strategy for primary and community care, developed as part of the NHS Next Stage Review, and set out in Our vision for primary and community care. It sets out the contribution that community pharmacy can make to reducing health inequalities by identifying and managing chronic disease, such as diabetes, especially in the most deprived areas as community pharmacy services are well placed to reach groups and individuals who do not routinely use primary care or general practice. Copies of both publications have already been placed in the Library.
Mr. Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what plans there are for future provision of diabetes screening services in community pharmacies; [290006]
(2) what steps his Department plans to take to encourage commissioning by primary care trusts of services provided by community pharmacies for (a) screening for and (b) treating Type 2 diabetes; [290007]
(3) what steps his Department plans to take to provide screening and treatment services for Type 2 diabetes in community pharmacies for hard-to-reach groups. [290008]
Phil Hope: The Government take its advice on screening matters from the National Screening Committee. It has advised that, while whole population screening for diabetes would not be clinically nor cost effective, targeted screening in a wider context of cardiovascular risk assessment would be effective. We do not have any plans for the introduction and provision of screening for diabetes alone.
However, we have introduced the NHS Health Check programme which will assess people's risk of heart disease, stroke, kidney disease and diabetes and will support people to reduce or manage that risk through individually tailored advice. This programme is for the whole population between 40-74 that is not already on a disease register for cardiovascular disease, diabetes or kidney disease.
To ensure that it contributes to tackle health inequalities, the programme has been designed so that the risk assessment element can be undertaken in a variety of settings, including community pharmacy. Phased implementation of the programme began in April and some primary care trusts (PCTs) have commissioned services from community pharmacies.
To help PCTs commission the NHS Health Check programme from community pharmacies, we have been working with a number of organisations, including those representing pharmacy, to develop a number of tools. With the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee, a national template has been designed to help PCTs commission the programme from community pharmacy and is available at
www.pcc.nhs.uk/302
In association with Primary Care Contracting, a Primary Care Service Framework has been developed to assist PCTs in commissioning the NHS Health Check programme from a number of providers including community pharmacy and is available at:
www.pcc.nhs.uk/news/531
Community pharmacists are well placed to support people diagnosed with diabetes to manage their condition effectively and many are doing so. Community pharmacy can provide a range of services from blood glucose testing, blood pressure management, safe use of medicines to providing healthy lifestyle advice.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many instances of counterfeit (a) medicines and (b) devices have been discovered in the supply chain in each of the last four years. [289451]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Since 2004, there have been 15 incidents of counterfeit medicines and 13 of counterfeit medical devices discovered in the United Kingdom supply chain. 10 incidents of counterfeit medicines reached pharmacy and patient level and led to the products being recalled. All 13 incidents of counterfeit medical devices reached patient level and action was taken to remove the products from the supply chain and inform the public.
| 2004-05 | 2005-0 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | Total | |
|
Medicines (discovered in supply chain before reaching patient) | |||||||
No fatalities or serious adverse reactions have been attributed to counterfeit medicines in the UK.
Although this represents a fraction of the 850 million prescriptions dispensed annually in the UK, or over 93,000 different types of medical devices on the market, the Government take the issue of counterfeit medical products very seriously.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has implemented a comprehensive anti-counterfeiting strategy which focuses on reducing the availability of counterfeit medical products in the UK.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent advice he has received on the possible relationship between incidence of childhood leukaemia and exposure to extremely low frequency electrical and magnetic fields; and if he will make a statement. [290042]
Gillian Merron: The Department has received advice from the Stakeholder Advisory Group on Extremely Low Frequency Electromagnetic Fields (SAGE). SAGE is a group of stakeholders representing sectors engaged with electricity transmission, regulation, property valuation, academic research and public concern campaigning. The remit of SAGE is to explore the implications for a precautionary approach to extremely low frequency electric and magnetic fields (ELF/EMF) and to make practical recommendations to Government. SAGE’s First Interim Assessment: Power Lines and Property, Wiring in Homes and Electrical Equipment in Homes considered two sources of EMF: high voltage overhead power lines and electrical wiring and equipment inside the home and was published in April 2007.
The Health Protection Agency (HPA) advised Government on the SAGE First Interim Assessment in October 2007. The HPA’s advice is available at:
www.hpa.org.uk/webw/HPAweb&HPAwebStandard/HPAweb_C/1204276682532?p=1207897920036.
The reply from the former Minister of State can be found at:
www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publichealth/Healthprotection/DH_4089500.
I will be issuing a written statement on the Government’s response to the SAGE First Interim Assessment very shortly on behalf of myself and my hon. Friends the Minister of State at the Department of Energy and Climate Change (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath), and the Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Mr. Austin).
12 Oct 2009 : Column 711W—continued
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times his Department has been taken to an employment tribunal in each of the last five years; what the reason cited in each case was; and in how many cases the tribunal found in favour of (a) the employee and (b) the Department. [290442]
Phil Hope: As detailed in the following table, in the last five years the Department has been taken to an employment tribunal twice.
The case in 2007-08 reason was one of discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, found in favour of the Department.
The case in 2005-06 reason was one of discrimination on the grounds of disability, found in favour of the claimant.
| Number of cases | Reason cited | Found in favour of | |
| (1) No cases from the current financial year have proceeded to tribunal to date. | |||
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what information his Department has on levels of misdiagnosis of epilepsy in (a) the general population and (b) the prison population; [289957]
(2) what information his Department has on the number of people with epilepsy who have been diagnosed by an epilepsy specialist in (a) the general population and (b) the prison population. [289960]
Ann Keen: Information on the number of people diagnosed by an epilepsy specialist is not collected centrally.
Information on the level of misdiagnosis for epilepsy is not collected.
In July, I wrote to all strategic health authorities drawing their attention to the report “Epilepsy in England: Time for Change”, which was published by Epilepsy Action earlier this year. In my letter, I also reinforced the importance of implementing the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence’s guidance and the National Service Framework for Long-term neurological Conditions in delivering high quality, accessible services for those living with epilepsy.
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what information his Department has on the number of people with epilepsy who have had a medical review in the last 12 months in (a) the general population and (b) the prison population; [289958]
(2) what information his Department has on the number of people with epilepsy who have uncontrolled seizures in (a) the general population and (b) the prison population. [289959]
Ann Keen: Information on the number of people with epilepsy who have uncontrolled seizures is not collected.
Information on the number of people with epilepsy who have had a medical review in the last 12 months is not collected.
In July, I wrote to all strategic health authorities drawing their attention to the report “Epilepsy in England: Time for Change”, which was published by Epilepsy Action earlier this year. In my letter, I also reinforced the importance of implementing the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence’s guidance and the National Service Framework for Long-term neurological Conditions in delivering high quality, accessible services for those living with epilepsy.
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the Care Quality Commission plans to undertake a review of the care of people in prison with epilepsy. [289965]
Phil Hope: Following consultation, the Care Quality Commission published in June 2009 their forthcoming programme of special reviews. A review of the care of people in prison with epilepsy is not currently within the agreed list of topics to start in 2009-10.
The Commission has informed us that it is considering what topics should be undertaken as special reviews and studies from 2010-11 and what consultation process would help inform its final decisions. A special review on the health and social care needs of offenders is one of many potential topics under consideration.
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps are taken to identify people with epilepsy on entry into (a) prisons and (b) young offender institutions; [289953]
(2) how many people in (a) prisons and (b) young offender institutions have epilepsy; [289954]
(3) what guidance his Department provides to staff in (a) prisons and (b) young offender institutions on the care of people with epilepsy; [289955]
(4) what recent assessment he has made of the extent to which the care of people in prison with epilepsy is in accordance with the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence clinical guidelines of 2004. [289961]
Phil Hope: There has been no centrally commissioned research or audit on this matter. Local primary care trusts (PCTs) are responsible for assuring the quality of care provided in primary care settings to their local population, which includes all publicly run prisons.
All clinical staff are regulated and subject to the same standards of practice including those providing care in prisons. The standards of care are found in the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidance CG20. The standards of care expressed in the New General Medical Services Quality Outcomes Framework will be monitored, as they are in general practice, across the prison estate following the roll out of a general practitioner clinical IT system.
The Department of Health and the Prison Reform Trust have recently published two new information books for prisoners with a disability. Copies have been placed
in the Library. The first book is a short, easy-read version for prisoners with learning difficulties, the second book contains more in depth detail for prisoners on their health, daily life, and how to get help in prison and on release this includes information on epilepsy.
Since 2006, PCTs have been responsible for commissioning health services for their offender health population. In commissioning these services, the NICE guidelines for epilepsy provides the benchmark for providers of these services.
The Department does not collect information on the number of people in prisons and young offender institutions that have epilepsy.
Offenders are now all screened on arrival in prison by a trained nurse or trained officer to find out what their health needs are and get them the right treatment. All new offenders entering prison reception either on remand or sentenced, have an initial health assessment undertaken to ensure that any immediate health needs are identified on the first night with a fuller comprehensive health assessment completed within five days of admission into custody.
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information his Department has on levels of incorrect prescription of medication for people with epilepsy in (a) the general population and (b) the prison population. [289956]
Ann Keen: Information on incorrect prescribing of medication for those with epilepsy is not collected.
In July, I wrote to all strategic health authorities drawing their attention to the report “Epilepsy in England: Time for Change”, which was published by Epilepsy Action earlier this year. In my letter, I also reinforced the importance of implementing the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence’s guidance and the National Service Framework for Long-term neurological Conditions in delivering high quality, accessible services for those living with epilepsy.
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of the (a) display energy certificate and (b) advisory report for public buildings issued in respect of each property occupied by the Food Standards Agency. [289925]
Gillian Merron: The display energy certificate for the Food Standards Agency can be found on the Office of Government Commerce website:
www.ogc.gov.uk/government_delivery_display_energy_certificate_data.asp
From the table one can obtain the relevant record number which allows viewing of the buildings advisory report which can be found on the following website:
www.ndepcregister.com
This response only covers the agency's property in England where it is the major occupier, that is Aviation House in Holborn.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what procedures are in place to ensure the marketing of breastmilk is in accordance with the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk. [289571]
Gillian Merron: The marketing of breastmilk substitutes must comply with the European directive on infant formula and follow on formula 2006/141/EC, which reflects the principles of the International Code for Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes. This sets out rules about the composition, labelling and advertising of formula.
The Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula (England) Regulations 2007 implement the provisions of this directive and prohibit the advertising of infant formula to the general public. The impact of these measures on the way follow-on formula is advertised and presented is currently being reviewed by an independent panel of experts.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what running costs have been incurred and how many patients have been treated at the Central and North West London National Problem Gambling Clinic since its opening in November 2008. [292316]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The information requested is a matter for Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust. We have written to Dame Ruth Runciman, Chair of Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust, informing her of the hon. Member's inquiry. She will reply shortly and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many GP practices in (a) Hertfordshire and (b) England are closed at lunchtimes on weekdays. [289429]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Information on general practitioner practices’ opening hours is not collected centrally. Practices are required to include in their practice leaflets the opening hours of practice premises and the method of obtaining access to services throughout core hours. Practices can also place this information on the NHS Choices website.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many doctors were employed by West Hertfordshire NHS primary care trust (a) in 1997 and (b) at the latest date for which figures are available. [289444]
Phil Hope: The number of doctors employed by West Hertfordshire primary care trust (PCT) for 2002 when PCTs were first established and for 2008 which is the latest data available, is shown in the following table.
| General and personal medical services and hospital and community health services: All Doctors( 1) within specified PCTs | |||
| Numbers (headcount) | |||
| Of which: | |||
| As at 30 September each year | All Doctors | Medical staff | General practitioners |
| Notes: 1. Excludes medical Hospital Practitioners and medical Clinical Assistants, most of whom are GPs working part time in hospitals. 2. Data quality Workforce statistics are compiled from data sent by more than 300 National Health Service trusts and PCTs in England. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data. Processing methods and procedures are continually being updated to improve data quality. Where this happens any impact on figures already published will be assessed but unless this is significant at national level they will not be changed. Where there is impact only at detailed or local level this will be footnoted in relevant analyses. Source: The Information Centre for health and social care Medical and Dental Workforce Census The Information Centre for health and social care General and Personal Medical Services Statistics | |||
Mr. David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding his Department has provided for translations research on single-gene disorders since the publication of the Genetics White Paper in 2003. [291770]
Gillian Merron: The information requested is shown in the following table.
| Actual and planned expenditure on single gene disorder (SGD) research: 2003-14 | ||||
| Departmental funding stream | Start date | End date | Expenditure to date (£ million) | Planned expenditure (£ million) |
|
National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centres | ||||
|
NIHR Collaborations for Leadership in Applied Health Research Care | ||||
| n/a = not available (1) This figure includes the total funding allocated by the Department to the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit. Only one of the Unit's five work streams is relevant to SGD but we do not have the means separately to identify the cost of that work stream. Note: Planned expenditure figures are a snapshot of the position at September 2009. Actual expenditure in future years will depend on a number of presently unknown factors, including the possible allocation of funds to new studies. | ||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 717W—continued
The NIHR Clinical Research Network is additionally providing national health service research infrastructure support to 16 SGD-related studies.
The Medical Research Council (MRC) also invests in genomic research and genomic medicine. The MRC receives its grant in aid from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his Department's policy is on the involvement of people affected by haemophilia in the consultation process for the re-tendering of the national contract for clotting factors for patients with haemophilia. [290517]
Gillian Merron: Work is under way with NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency to tender for new national contracts for blood clotting factors, which will commence from April 2010.
As part of the consultation process the Haemophilia Society (which represents patients affected by haemophilia) have been intensively involved in the planning stages of this contract and are also facilitating patient representation in the evaluation of products which will form part of the decision-making process.
In addition, a series of workshops are currently being rolled out across the national health service to ensure as wide as possible consultation is carried out prior to commencing these contacts this will representation of patients through their clinicians and directly through the Haemophilia Society.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of qualified health visitors aged (a) between 20 and 30 years, (b) between 31 and 40 years, (c) between 41 and 50 years, (d) between 51 and 60 years and (e) 60 years and over who are not presently practising. [289309]
Phil Hope: The Department does not collect this information.
Data about lapsed registered health visiting qualifications in England are held by the Nursing and Midwifery Council.
Strategic health authorities in partnership with the Department are considering currently the feasibility of developing a Return to Practice programme for their areas.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of health visitors were (a) male and (b) female in each year since 1997. [289387]
| NHS hospital and community health services: Health visitors in England by gender as at 30 September each specified year | ||||||
| headcount and percentage headcount | ||||||
| All staff | Male | Female | Unknown | % Male | % Female | |
| Note: Percentages are based on the numbers of staff whose gender is known. The gender of bank staff is not collected. Source: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care Non-Medical Workforce census. | ||||||
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of health visitors were from black and minority ethnic groups in each year since 1997. [289388]
Ann Keen: The numbers are given in the following table.
| NHS hospital and community health services: Health visitors in England by ethnic group as at 30 September each specified year | |||||
| Old ethnic codes | |||||
| White | Black | Asian | Other | Unknown | |
| New ethnic codes | |||||||||
| White | Mixed | Asian or Asian British | Black or black British | Chinese | Other | Unknown | Total ethnic minority groups( 1) (%) | All groups | |
| (1) "Unknown" includes unstated and unrecorded ethnic group. The ethnic group of all bank staff is not recorded. (2) We are aware of the apparent increase in the numbers of black/black British health visitors in 2007 then subsequent decrease in 2008. We have analysed this data from a number of different perspectives and have concluded that there is not a single cause for this. Data is now extracted from Electronic Staff Record and this has improved on data quality from previous years. Percentages are calculated on the numbers of staff whose ethnic group is known. Source: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care Non-Medical Workforce census. | |||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 720W—continued
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of student health visitors became qualified health visitors in each of the last five years. [289966]
Kevin Brennan: I have been asked to reply
The Department does not hold information down to the level of health visitor students. Higher Education Statistics Agency information on the number of students who qualified from nursing courses, the category within which health visitor students are included, has been provided as an alternative.
The proportion of nursing students who became qualified is not available.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average vacancy rate for health visitors in each primary care trust was in the latest period for which figures are available. [289310]
Phil Hope: The vacancy rate for health visitors by primary care trust has been placed in the Library.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what percentage of home help contact hours in each region were provided by (a) council authorities and (b) the independent sector according to the results of his Department's home help returns in the latest period for which figures are available; [289449]
(2) if he will publish the results of the 2008 home help returns for each (a) region, (b) shire county, (c) unitary authority and (d) metropolitan district. [289450]
Phil Hope: Information on the number of people receiving home care/home help services during a sample week in September each year is collected on the HHl return and published by the NHS Information Centre for health and social care.
The following table shows the percentage of home help contact hours in each region provided by councils with adult social services responsibilities (CASSRs) and the independent sector during the sample week in September 2008.
| Hours provided | Percentage of hours | ||
| All sectors | CASSR | Independent | |
| Source: HHl return, table 1.1. | |||
The full HHl data for 2008—the latest available—has been published and is available on the NHS Information Centre website at:
www.ic.nhs.uk/statistics-and-data-collections/social-care/adult-social-care-information/community-care-statistics-2008:-help-care-services-for-adults-england
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much each hospice funded by his Department has received from his Department in the latest period for which figures are available; and what criteria his Department uses to determine its funding allocations to hospices. [289551]
Phil Hope:
Funding for hospices comes from primary care trusts (PCTs), not from the Department. It is for individual PCTs to decide the level of funding they allocate to hospices, based on assessments of local
needs and priorities. The level of funding a hospice receives is a matter for negotiation between the local PCT and the hospice.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what data NHS trusts are required to collect to monitor levels of (a) use of mixed-sex accommodation and (b) standards of privacy and dignity provided for patients. [291785]
Phil Hope: Annually, the national adult in-patient survey conducted by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) is used to measure patient experience relating to mixed sex accommodation and privacy and dignity. Nationally, there is no requirement to monitor occurrences of mixed sex accommodation.
The 2009-10 NHS Standard Contract for Acute Hospital Services states:
“The Provider shall have a Mixed Sex Accommodation Reduction Plan, and shall comply with its obligations under that plan.”
“The plan agreed in accordance with the Law and Guidance between the provider and the co-ordinating commissioner which sets out obligations, timescales and performance monitoring mechanisms to deliver substantial reductions in the number of patients sharing with members of the opposite sex sleeping or sanitary accommodation owned or controlled by the provider or a sub-contractor.”
Because the Department is committed to keep patient experience at the heart of delivery, ahead of the next (2009) CQC annual in-patient survey outcome, it is currently exploring with strategic health authorities, arrangements that would provide indications of progress by the local national health service in delivering same-sex accommodation.
Mr. David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what recent estimate he has made of the number of A-rated circulator pumps which are installed in NHS hospitals; [291788]
(2) what energy efficiency standards his Department has stipulated for circulator pumps in its guidance on private finance initiative projects. [291789]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Department does not collect data centrally on the number of A-rated circulator pumps installed in national health service hospitals in England.
All capital development schemes, whether private finance initiative or publicly funded projects, are expected to comply with energy efficiency standards of 35 to 55 gigajoules per one hundred metres squared (Gj/100m(2)), and also with BREEAM Healthcare requirements (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) to ensure healthcare facilities are constructed with sustainability and energy efficiency in mind. The Department provides guidance to assist the NHS and their partners in meeting this criteria.
This information is contained in the guidance document “Health Technical Memorandum 07-02: Encode—making energy work in healthcare”, a copy of which has been placed in the Library, and which provides general energy
efficiency standards within healthcare facilities. This guidance covers new build and refurbishment as well as the energy management of existing operational facilities and provides advice about pumps, fans and boilers. Capital project teams will make their own decisions about specific items of equipment, such as circulator pumps, to ensure they are appropriate to meet the needs, circumstances and efficiency of their particular schemes.
Mr. Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting time for a hip replacement operation has been in (a) Sunderland and (b) England in each year since 2001. [289332]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Median time waited (days) for hip replacement operations for Sunderland Primary Care Trust and England are shown in the following table:
| Sunderland Primary Care Trust | England | |
| Notes: 1. Time waited data has been provided where the main operation was a hip replacement operation. 2. Operative procedure codes were revised for 2006-07 and 2007-08. The 2008-09 and 2007-08 data uses OPCS 4.4 codes, 2006-07 data uses OPCS 4.3 codes, data prior to 2006-07 uses OPCS 4.2 codes. All codes that were in OPCS 4.2 remain in later OPCS 4 versions, however the introduction of OPCS 4.3 codes enable the recording of interventions and procedures which were not possible in OPCS 4.2. In particular, OPCS 4.3 and OPCS 4.4 codes include high cost drugs and diagnostic imaging, testing and rehabilitation. Some activity may have been coded under different codes in OPCS 4.2. These changes need to be borne in mind when analysing time series and may explain some apparent variations over time. Please note that care needs to be taken in using the newer codes as some providers of data were unable to start using the new codes at the beginning of each data year. 3. The quality and coverage of HES data have improved over time. The improvements in information submitted by the national health service have been particularly marked in the earlier years and need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. Some of the increase in figures for later years (particularly 2006-07 onwards) may be due to the improvement in the coverage of independent sector activity. Changes in NHS practice also need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. For example, a number of procedures may now be undertaken in out-patient settings and may no longer be accounted for in the HES data. This may account for any reductions in activity over time. 4. Time waited statistics from HES are not the same as the published waiting list statistics. HES provides counts and time waited for all patients admitted to hospital within a given period, whereas the published waiting list statistics count those waiting for treatment on a specific date and how long they have been on the waiting list. Also, HES calculates the time waited as the difference between the admission and decision to admit dates. Unlike published waiting list statistics, this is not adjusted for self-deferrals or periods of medical/social suspension. Source: Hospital Episodes Statistics (HES), The NHS Information Centre for health and social care. | ||
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many universities offer (a) pre- and (b) post-registration courses for nurses on continence education and training. [289452]
Phil Hope:
This information is not collected centrally. For pre-registration education, the United Kingdom regulatory body, the Nursing and Midwifery Council, sets Standards of Proficiency for all nursing courses.
Although continence is not identified separately, its management is implicit within several of the essential nursing skills which are required to be demonstrated.
Post-registration training is the responsibility of employers, who are best placed to understand the roles and responsibilities—and hence the training needs—of their staff. Specific post-registration training courses in continence and continence care are available and these are accessed according to local need.
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the most common cause of infant mortality is. [291646]
Angela E. Smith: I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked them to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what the most common cause of infant mortality is. (291646)
Infant mortality is defined as death under one year after live birth, and can be divided into neonatal deaths (less than 28. days after live birth) and postneonatal deaths (28 days but under one year). In England and Wales, neonatal deaths are registered using a special perinatal death certificate which enables reporting of relevant diseases or conditions in both the infant and the mother. For postneonatal deaths, a single underlying cause of death can be reported as for adults. ONS has developed a classification system producing broad cause groups to enable direct comparison of neonatal and postneonatal deaths.
Using this ONS classification, the most common cause of infant deaths is ‘Immaturity related conditions’. This includes certain respiratory, cardiovascular and other conditions related primarily to the prematurity or low birthweight of the infant. In 2007 (the latest year for which figures are available), there were 1,346 infant deaths coded to ‘Immaturity related conditions’, 42 per cent of all infant deaths in England and Wales in that year.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many people with a learning disability have been referred for further treatment as a result of an annual health check in the latest period for which figures are available [290203]
(2) how many practising GPs have (a) had training and (b) been accredited to provide health checks to people with a learning disability. [290206]
Ann Keen: This information is held at local level and is not available centrally.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps he plans to take to (a) monitor and (b) evaluate the effect of direct enhanced service annual health checks on people with a learning disability; [290204]
(2) how many people with a learning disability have had a health check in the last 12 months. [290205]
Phil Hope:
We have commissioned an extraction of data from a sample of general practitioner (GP) practice clinical systems. This information will be used to inform
the continued commissioning of this Directed Enhanced Service through the GP contract arrangements.
We will also collect information to support a newly agreed Vital Sign indicator on the number of health checks completed in 2008-09. This will begin in October. This exercise will be repeated in May 2010 to collect retrospective information on the number of checks completed in 2009-10.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 724W—continued
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many patients were admitted to each hospital in the East of England as a consequence of (a) alcoholic liver disease and (b) cirrhosis of the liver in each of the last 10 years; [291482]
(2) how many patients were admitted to hospital as a consequence of (a) alcoholic liver disease and (b) cirrhosis of the liver in each of the last 10 years. [291483]
Gillian Merron: Data on the number of patients admitted for alcoholic liver disease and cirrhosis of the liver for the last 10 years to each hospital in the East of England are not available. However, the following tables provide the number of admissions to hospital for alcoholic liver disease and cirrhosis of the liver for the last 10 years in England and for each hospital provider for the East of England strategic health authority.
When considering this data, it is important to note the following:
that data for 2008-09 is provisional;
to protect patient confidentiality, figures between 1 and 5 have been suppressed and replaced with “*” (an asterisk) and where it was possible to identify numbers from the total due to a single suppressed number in a row or column, an additional number (the next smallest) has been also been suppressed;
that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year; and
K70, the ICD-10 code for alcoholic liver disease, was used to identify admissions due to alcoholic liver disease, while K70.3, K71.7, K74.3-K74.6 and A52.7 with K77.0 were the ICD-10 codes used to identify admissions due to cirrhosis of the liver.
Table 1: Number of finished admission episodes for alcoholic liver disease and cirrhosis of the liver for 1999-2000 to 2008-09 for each hospital provider for the East of England strategic health authority has been placed in the Library.
| Table 2: Number of finished admission episodes for alcoholic liver disease and cirrhosis of the liver in England for 1999-2000 to 2008-09 | ||
| Admission for alcoholic liver disease | Admission for cirrhosis of the liver | |
| (1) Provisional data. Notes: 1. Finished admission episodes: A finished admission episode is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. Finished admission episodes are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. 2. Primary diagnosis: The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) diagnosis fields in the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital. 3. Provisional data: The 2008-09 data is provisional and may be incomplete or contain errors for which no adjustments have yet been made. Counts produced from provisional data are likely to be lower than those generated for the same period in the final dataset. This shortfall will be most pronounced in the final month of the latest period i.e. November from the (month 9) April to November extract. It is also probable that clinical data are not complete, which may in particular affect the last two months of any given period. There may also be a variety of errors due to coding inconsistencies that have not yet been investigated and corrected. 4. Secondary diagnosis: As well as the primary diagnosis, there are up to 19 (13 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and six prior to 2002-03) secondary diagnosis fields in HES that show other diagnoses relevant to the episode of care. 5. Data quality: HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts in England. Data is also received from a number of independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data via HES processes. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain. 6 . Assessing growth through time: HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. The quality and coverage of the data have improved over time. These improvements in information submitted by the NHS have been particularly marked in the earlier years and need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. Some of the increase in figures for later years (particularly 2006-07 onwards) may be due to the improvement in the coverage of independent sector activity. Changes in NHS practice also need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. For example, a number of procedures may now be undertaken in out-patient settings and may no longer be accounted for in the HES data. This may account for any reductions in activity over time. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), the NHS Information Centre for health and social care. | ||
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent on NHS maternity services in (a) the Vale of York, (b) North Yorkshire and (c) England in (i) 2005, (ii) 2006, (iii) 2007 and (iv) 2008. [291713]
Phil Hope: Information is not collected in the format requested. In the following table we show information on maternity expenditure by the primary care trusts (PCT) that cover the York and North Yorkshire area. In 2006-07, the Selby and York, Hambleton and Richmond, Craven, Harrowgate and Rural District, Scarborough, Whitby and Ryedale PCTs amalgamated to form the North Yorkshire and York PCT.
| Purchase of secondary health care—maternity services 2004-05 to 2007-08 | ||||
| £000 | ||||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | |
| Note: Where possible any inter PCT expenditure is eliminated to avoid double counting in the England figures. Source: Primary care trust audited summarisation schedules | ||||
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times hospitals in (a) the Vale of York, (b) North Yorkshire and (c) England closed maternity units to expectant mothers in (i) 2005, (ii) 2006, (iii) 2007 and (iv) 2008. [291796]
Phil Hope: Information is not collected centrally on the number of maternity unit closures.
Patients from the Vale of York and North Yorkshire access obstetric care at the Friarage hospital, but there are also women who receive their obstetric care from the James Cook University hospital in Middlesbrough. There has been one occasion when maternity services have closed for a significant amount of time. This is the closure of the Friarage hospital between the 17 July 2009 and the 26 October 2009.
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to reply to the letter of 15 June 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on Mr A I Ul Haq. [290234]
Phil Hope: A reply was sent to Sir Gerald Kaufman, the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on 27 July 2009.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what systems are in place to address non-adherence to treatment or medication amongst mental health service users; and what information his Department holds on the number of mental health services where these systems are applied; [290318]
(2) how many serious untoward incidents where treatment or medication adherence was a contributing factor there have been in the last 12 months. [290319]
Phil Hope: The information requested about serious untoward incidents and treatment or medication adherence is not held centrally.
There are no national systems in place that are specific to addressing non-adherence to treatment or medication. However, non-adherence is a key issue in mental health risk assessment and as such should, where appropriate, form part of a service user’s care plan. The introduction of supervised community treatment helps to ensure that service users get the right treatment at the right time and will help with adherence.
This represents a 52 per cent. decrease between the first quarter of 2006 and the first quarter of 2009.
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what data his Department collects on the availability of low, medium and high secure beds in the independent sector; and if he will make a statement. [290244]
Phil Hope: There are no high secure beds in the independent sector. High secure services can only be provided under licence by the Secretary of State, and such licences can only be granted to national health service trusts approved for this purpose.
Information is not collected centrally on the availability of low and medium secure beds in the independent sector.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding his Department has allocated for provision of mental health services in West Hertfordshire for 2009-10. [289409]
Phil Hope: Funding is allocated to primary care trusts and they are responsible for commissioning services, including mental health services to meet the needs of the communities that they serve.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health at what locations in Hertfordshire severely mentally impaired children may be treated; and what choice parents have about the location at which treatment is provided. [289411]
Phil Hope: It is for primary care trusts to commission services in order to ensure that Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) services are available to the children and young people for which they are responsible, taking into account the needs and wishes of the patients and their carers.
The Department provided £2.5 million capital funding to enable Hertfordshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust to recently refurbish a facility for children and young people being treated for mental health problems, specifically designed to eliminate the inappropriate use of adult psychiatric wards by children and young people.
The East of England Strategic Health Authority has advised that on 17 September 2009 the £7 million redevelopment of Hertfordshire Primary Care Trust was officially re-opened. This newly expanded and upgraded unit will accommodate 16 young people (up to the age of 18); with several of the beds earmarked for young people with eating disorders. This extra capacity means the trust will be able to care for the most vulnerable young people who need in-patient care within the county, and in easy reach of their families.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to implement each of the recommendations of Lord Bradley’s review of people with mental health problems or learning disabilities in the criminal justice system which were accepted by his Department. [290010]
Phil Hope: Lord Bradley made 82 recommendations, many of which Lord Bradley himself recognised needed further work to ensure that all implications are considered for children, young people and adults. The Government have accepted all recommendations and the direction set out in the report and has committed to publish a cross-departmental Health and Criminal Justice Strategic Delivery Plan by the end of October 2009.
A Health and Criminal Justice National Programme Board has been fully operational since June 2009 bringing together senior officials in the key departments (Department of Health, Ministry of Justice, Home Office, Department for Children, Schools and Families). The Programme Board has been meeting monthly to pull together the national delivery plan and ensure appropriate cross-government representation and engagement as actions are being developed.
The Delivery Plan will set out our shared vision for improving health and social care services for all those in touch with the criminal justice system and the newly established Health and Criminal Justice Programme Board are working hard to ensure that all the Bradley recommendations are fully incorporated into this cross-government plan.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of prisoners with acute, severe mental illnesses who have waited more than 14 days for transfer to an appropriate healthcare setting in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [290012]
Phil Hope: National data on prison transfers for the current 12-week waiting standard is collected on a quarterly basis with transfer rates compared against a 2005-06 baseline. The data indicates a downward trend in prisoners waiting in excess of 12-weeks for transfers; since 2005-06, these numbers have reduced by 33 per cent.
| Prisoners waiting longer than 12 weeks for mental health transfer | |
| Date | Number of prisoners |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 729W—continued
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what the membership is of the National Programme Board responsible for developing a national approach to mental health and learning disability services for offenders; [290192]
(2) whether the Government has accepted in full the recommendation to establish a national advisory group, made in Lord Bradley's review of people with mental health problems or learning disabilities in the criminal justice system. [290325]
Phil Hope: The membership of the National Health and Criminal Justice Programme Board is as follows:
| Name | Organisation |
The Government have fully accepted Lord Bradley’s recommendation that a National Advisory Group be established to support Ministers and the Health and Criminal Justice Programme Board in their development of this agenda. The cross-departmental National Health and Criminal Justice Programme Board has been fully operational since June 2009 and alongside officials, has been developing arrangements for the set up of the National Advisory Group. The membership of the National Advisory Group is currently being agreed by Ministers and will be confirmed shortly.
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken since the publication of Lord Bradley’s review of people with mental health problems or learning disabilities in the criminal justice system to increase the rate of transfer of prisoners with severe mental illnesses from prison to secure hospital settings; and if he will make a statement. [290243]
Phil Hope: The Government recognise the importance of ensuring that prisoners with severe mental illness who require treatment in hospital have timely access to that treatment. The Government’s response of 30 April 2009 to Lord Bradley’s Report accepted in principle the direction in respect of 14-day prison transfers.
The Government are considering the feasibility of introducing a 14-day transfer standard. A specific project to address prison transfers has been established, this is focusing on the provision of guidance and support to the national health service and Criminal Justice System to ensure transfers happen both smoothly and as quickly as possible. The Government will make a further report to Parliament in the autumn.
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many bed days were recorded for patients aged (a) 16 and (b) 17 years on adult psychiatric wards in each quarter of the last three years. [291934]
Phil Hope: It is not possible to disaggregate the figures for 16 and 17-year-olds but the following table gives the number of 16 to 17-year olds in England who were treated on adult psychiatric wards in each quarter for the past three years.
| Quarter | Bed days—16/17s on psychiatric adult ward | |
This represents a 52 per cent. decrease between the first quarter of 2006 and the first quarter of 2009.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of prisoners diagnosed with serious mental illnesses since July 2000; and if he will make a statement. [290011]
Phil Hope: Although there are no officially recognised data on prisoners with severe mental illness, we are aware that there is a significant number of people in custody suffering from serious mental illness. A review of mental health in reach teams for the National Institute for Health Research in 2008 suggested that around 23 per cent., of the prison population suffer from severe mental illness.
The Government will be publishing its response to Lord Bradley’s review of people with mental health problems and learning disabilities in the criminal justice system in the autumn as part of a wider ranging offender health strategic delivery plan. This response will include the Government’s plans for improving mental health care for prisoners.
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to suspend methadone prescriptions for prisoners in prisons where the drug rehabilitation programme is based on abstinence. [291958]
Phil Hope: No. In line with the National Treatment Agency guidance, when matching treatment to individual need, both treatment (such as methadone prescription) and drug rehabilitation programmes might be appropriate depending on the needs of the individual at a given time and it would not be appropriate therefore to exclude one form of treatment at the expense of another.
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consultations took place on the introduction of methadone prescriptions for prisoners. [291959]
Phil Hope: Since at least 1995 methadone has been recommended as one of a number of possible treatments for the management of drug dependence in prison.
The current clinical guidelines are “Clinical Management of Drug Dependence in the Adult Prison Setting” which was published in December 2006, a copy of which has been placed in the Library. The document aimed to address the current challenges facing the care and treatment of substance misusers in prisons including: the need to provide clinical interventions that harmonise with practice in community and other criminal justice settings and meet the individuals need and address the vulnerability of drug-using prisoners to suicide and self-harm in prison, and to death upon release from custody due to accidental opiate overdose.
The document was developed in consultation with key Government Departments, professional organisations, commissioning organisations and service providers including:
HM Prison Service;
Department of Health;
Home Office;
National Treatment Agency;
National Addiction Centre;
National Offender Management Service Drug Strategy Unit;
Prison Officers Association;
Royal College of Psychiatrists; and
Royal College of General Practitioners.
The 2007 “Drug Misuse and Dependence: UK guidelines on clinical management” a copy of which has already been placed in the Library, contains specific information on the clinical management of drug dependence in prisons as a specific setting and are in line with the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines “Drug misuse: psychosocial interventions” (NICE clinical guideline 51) and “Drug misuse: opioid detoxification” (NICE clinical guideline 52).
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many midwives were employed in the National Health Service in (a) the Vale of York, (b) North Yorkshire and (c) England in (i) 2005, (ii) 2006, (iii) 2007 and (iv) 2008. [291794]
Phil Hope: The numbers of midwives employed in the national health service in York Hospitals NHS Trust, North Yorkshire Primary Care Trusts and NHS Trusts, and England in 2005-2008 are shown in the following table:
| NHS hospital and community health services: Midwives in England, Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority and North Yorkshire Primary Care Trusts and NHS Trusts | ||||
| Headcount as at 30 September each specified year | ||||
| 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | |
| Source: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care Non-Medical Workforce census. | ||||
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of children under the age of five years received two doses of MMR vaccine in each quarter of the last 10 years. [289314]
Gillian Merron: The Health Protection Agency collect and publish quarterly provisional data on the proportion of the population who are vaccinated at five years of age with a second dose of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR).
| Percentage of five year olds (England) who have received two doses of MMR | ||||
| Quarter 1 | Quarter 2 | Quarter 3 | Quarter 4 | |
| (1 )2005-06—last three quarters and 2006-07 first quarter—national data not estimated due to missing data for 10 of the 31 London primary care trusts (PCTs) due to problems relating to the implementation of new child health IT system. Coverage estimates are always significantly lower in London compared to all other regions in England therefore to calculate an England estimate without these PCTs would have given a spurious increase in coverage. | ||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 732W—continued
Mr. David Anderson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will include in the forthcoming Health White Paper proposals for ring-fenced funding for
Duchenne muscular dystrophy research and clinical trials. [291768]
Gillian Merron: There are no plans to change the usual practice of the Department’s National Institute for Health Research and of the Medical Research Council, not to ring-fence funds for expenditure on particular topics: research proposals in all areas compete for the funding available. Future levels of expenditure on Duchenne muscular dystrophy research will be determined by the success of relevant bids for funding.
Mr. David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for the provision of continuing care for people with (a) Duchenne muscular dystrophy and (b) other single-gene disorders. [291767]
Phil Hope: A revised “National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care” was published in August 2009. This framework covers those with Duchenne’s muscular dystrophy and other single-gene disorders as the eligibility criteria for continuing care is not disease specific. A copy of the framework has been placed in the Library.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research the National School for Social Care Research has (a) undertaken and (b) published since its establishment; and what research projects are ongoing at that school. [290391]
Gillian Merron: The National Institute of Health Research’s School for Social Care Research became operational on 1 April 2009 and published its first call for research proposals in July. The school has begun a small number of preliminary studies, but none has reached the publication stage.
More information about the school and its research activities can be found on-line at:
www.lse.ac.uk/collections/NIHRSSCR/.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the largest (a) absolute and (b) percentage reduction in costs to the public purse was following successful taxation of claimant costs in cases involving the NHS Litigation Authority in each of the last five years; and which solicitor's firm was involved in each case. [289838]
Phil Hope: The information requested can only be provided at disproportionate cost, as it would involve the NHS Litigation Authority working through each and every claim received within the five-year period.
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding his Department has provided to the Carers Federation to administer the Independent Complaints Advocacy Service in the East Midlands in each year since the service was launched in September 2003. [292390]
Phil Hope: The Department’s current contract with The Carers Federation started in April 2006. A yearly breakdown of funding from the Department to the Carers Federation to administer the independent complaints advocacy service in the East Midlands from September 2003 as follows:
| Financial year | Amount paid (£) |
Jim Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate he has made of the annual cost to NHS hospitals of complying with his Department’s copying letters policy; and what proportion of NHS patients chose to opt out of the policy. [290091]
Phil Hope: The Department does not collect information on the annual cost of copying letters to patients or on the numbers of patients that choose to opt-out of receiving copies of their letters.
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of the report commissioned by his Department from McKinsey and Co on NHS efficiency savings. [292108]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The report McKinsey provided on how to deliver efficiency savings in the national health service was commissioned by officials in February 2009. Neither the Prime Minister or Ministers were informed of the commission or sighted on the advice. Ministers were informed following initial media inquires in September 2009. Ministers rejected the main proposals in the report. The information has been commissioned for internal NHS management consideration and is not intended for publication. It is therefore not appropriate for a copy of the report to be placed in the Library.
Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what dates (a) he and (b) the Prime Minister were first informed of the commissioning by his Department of the study by McKinsey and Company into NHS costs, staffing and services; and when he plans to publish (i) the terms of reference of the study and (ii) its (A) interim and (B) final reports. [291490]
Mr. Mike O'Brien:
The information McKinsey provided on national health service productivity was commissioned by officials in February. Neither my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Health (Andy Burnham) or his predecessor Alan Johnson were informed of the commission or sighted on the advice. Ministers were informed following initial media inquiries in September. Ministers rejected the main proposal in
the report. The information had been commissioned for internal NHS management consideration and is not intended for publication.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009, Official Report, column 532W, on health visitors: crimes of violence, what figures his Department holds on incidents of harassment, bullying or abuse of (a) heath visitors and (b) other national health service staff by (i) patients and service users and (ii) managers. [291451]
Phil Hope: Information on the number of incidents of bullying, harassment or abuse against national health service staff is not collected centrally. This could be collected only at disproportionate cost. However, the 2008 survey of National Health Service staff undertaken by the Healthcare Commission provided information on staff views about working in the national health service, including experience of harassment, bullying or abuse. The relevant findings are presented in the following table.
| Percentage staff experiencing harassment, bullying or abuse from patients/relatives in last 12 months | Percentage staff experiencing harassment, bullying or abuse from staff in last 12 months | |
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009, Official Report, column 524W, on risk assessment of automatic generic drug substitution, what plans he has to undertake (a) a full risk benefit analysis and (b) other impact assessment evaluation in respect of each specific proposal; and if he will make a statement. [290156]
Mr. Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) when he expects his Department to publish proposals for the implementation of generic substitution; [291537]
(2) when he plans to launch his consultation on the implementation of generic substitution. [291538]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Department is currently refining its proposals for the implementation of generic substitution and plans to formally consult in the autumn. An impact assessment will be published alongside the consultation document.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the effects on levels of availability of pharmaceuticals in the UK of increases in exports of such pharmaceuticals consequent on the value of sterling. [291782]
Mr. Mike O'Brien:
We have had reports from pharmaceutical manufacturers, wholesalers and pharmacy contractors of problems with the supply of medicines
attributed to increased exports of medicines with the decline in value of the sterling. The Department is watching the situation with care.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the savings which have accrued to the NHS arising from the introduction of NHS charging for those refused asylum in the UK in each year since 2004. [291808]
Phil Hope: Although total income received from chargeable overseas patients is recorded, national health service trusts do not routinely record the immigration status of patients that are treated either free or on a chargeable basis. Hence, no estimate is available of the savings accrued to the NHS from charging those refused asylum in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many claims were made under the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts in each financial year since 1997-98 for which figures are available; what the combined monetary value of such claims was in each year; and what proportion of such claims (a) were for the recovery of the claimant's legal and other costs and (b) related to each clinical area in each year. [291501]
Phil Hope: The information requested was provided by the NHS Litigation Authority and a copy has been placed in the Library.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the highest ratio of claimant costs to legal costs in cases involving the NHS litigation authority in respect of which legal proceedings have been completed was in each of the last five years; and how much was spent on (a) claimant costs and (b) damages in total in relation to such cases in which claimant costs exceeded damages in each of those years. [291711]
Phil Hope: The NHS Litigation Authority does not record data specifically on legal costs, but records global costs paid by defendants and claimants, which will include legal costs, medical expert witnesses and other disbursements. To provide data specifically on legal costs would be at disproportionate cost.
The NHS Litigation Authority has provided data in the following tables that cover overall claimant costs and damages as an alternative to the information requested.
| Table 1: Top highest claimant costs to damages ratio for clinical negligence claims in each of the last five years where legal proceedings were completed in those years | |||
| Year of closure | Damages paid (£) | Claimant costs paid (£) | Proportion of costs to damages (percentage) |
| Table 2: Damages and claimant costs paid on all closed clinical negligence claims where the claimant costs exceeded the damages by year of closure | ||
| Year of closure | Damages paid (£) | Claimant costs paid (£) |
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 6 July 2009, Official Report, column 583-84W, on staff pay, how many staff received a salary of more than £100,000 in current prices in each year; and how many staff were receiving a salary of more than £100,000 on 1 April 2009. [290286]
Phil Hope: The number of the Department's staff receiving a salary of more than £100,000 in each year, expressed in prices as at 1 April 2009, is presented in the following table.
| In post date as at 1 April each year | Number of staff |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 737W—continued
Salaries have been recalculated based on the changes in the consumer price index (CPI), averaged over the whole of each year and include all pay-related allowances.
Information prior to 2003 is not held centrally and can only be obtained at disproportionate cost as recalculation before that date would involve searching individual paper files.
The number of staff receiving a salary of more than £100,000 on 1 April 2009 was 74.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for South Cambridgeshire of 6 July 2009, Official Report, column 583W, on departmental pay, how many staff (a) received a salary of more than £100,00 in each year since 1997, expressed in 2009 prices and (b) were earning more than £100,000 on 1 April 2009. [290305]
Phil Hope: The number of the Department's staff receiving a salary of more than £100,000 in each year, expressed in prices as at 1 April 2009, is presented in the following table.
| In post date | Number of staff |
Salaries have been recalculated based on the changes in the Consumer Price Index (CPI), averaged over the whole of each year and include all pay-related allowances.
Information prior to 2003 is not held centrally and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost as recalculation before that date would involve searching individual paper files.
The number of staff receiving a salary of more than £100,000 on 1 April 2009 was 74.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what the percentage change in salary of each board member of each NHS (a) trust and (b) foundation was in each year since 2001; [291757]
(2) what (a) pay and (b) other benefits each board member of each NHS (i) trust and (ii) foundation has received in each year since 2001. [291758]
Phil Hope: This information is not collected centrally. National health service trusts and NHS foundation trusts are public bodies, and the remuneration of their senior executive teams is a matter of public record and published in their annual accounts.
NHS trusts and foundation trusts have full responsibility for determining the rates of remuneration for their senior executive board members. Foundation trusts have full responsibility for determining the remuneration of their non-executive directors (that is, of their board members).
Pay rates for non-executive board members in NHS trusts are set centrally by the Department. The rates for all years since 2001-02 are as follows:
| Chair—scale minimum | Chair—scale maximum | Non-executive director | Percentage increase | |
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of per capita NHS spending in (a) North Yorkshire, (b) Yorkshire and the Humber and (c) England in 2009-10. [291693]
Mr. Mike O'Brien:
The following table shows the 2009-10 revenue allocations made to North Yorkshire and York Primary Care Trust (PCT), the sum of the allocations made to the PCTs within Yorkshire and Humber Strategic Health Authority (SHA) and the
England total. Over 80 per cent. of national health service revenue funding was allocated directly to PCTs for 2009-10 in this way. The table also shows the 2009-10 allocation per head and the total responsible population that each of these areas covers.
SHAs also receive funding, some of which is passed to PCTs. Yorkshire and Humber SHA received £703 million for 2009-10 or £133 per head of responsible population. PCTs also receive some funding through other, smaller, allocations.
| 2009-10 PCT revenue allocations | |||
| 2009-10 allocation (£000) | 2009-10 allocation per head (£) | 2009-10 responsible population( 1) | |
| (1) The responsible population is the number of people permanently registered with general practitioner (GP) practices within the PCT boundary, irrespective of where the people are resident. It also includes people not registered with a GP such as prisoners, armed forces including their dependants and asylum seekers. To reconcile ‘list variation’ between the GP registered population and Office for National Statistics (ONS) populations for PCTs, the GP registered populations were constrained to the 2006 based ONS population projections published on 12 June 2008. (2) SHAs do not receive allocations and the allocation shown here represents the sum of the allocations to PCTs within Yorkshire and the Humber SHA. | |||
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what medicines and patient services have been procured through a reverse e-auction in each of the last 48 months; [290388]
(2) what criteria the Purchasing and Supply Agency uses in deciding whether to use a reverse e-auction to procure medicines or services for patients; [290389]
(3) what guidance his Department has issued to the Purchasing and Supply Agency on the use of e-auctions. [290390]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency (NHS PASA) has undertaken one reverse e-auction in the last 12 months for water coolers. Information on what medicines and patient services procured through reverse e-auctions in the national health service is not collected centrally.
The NHS PASA consider the following criteria before deciding on whether to undertake an e-auction:
an accurate and unambiguous specification of the buyer's requirement to ensure that suppliers are clear on what is required, and are bidding against the same criteria. The regulations state that the specification must be established with precision. Where your requirements cannot be established with precision, or where some elements of your requirements are negotiable, it will not be appropriate to use an e Auction;
a sufficient (proposed) spend to encourage competition and supplier participation;
a large enough pool of suppliers to ensure competition during the e Auction (and a willingness and aptitude of such suppliers to participate in electronic bidding—this can be driven by spend or the strategic importance of the contract);
availability of the goods/services - there should be no known market distortions such as shortages or surpluses as these may have an impact on e Auctions which is not beneficial to the buyer; and
there must be a credible "switching threat" —i.e. a willingness by stakeholders to switch to an alternative supplier if this is the result of the e Auction because any contract offer must be made to the winning tenderer.
No guidance has been provided to NHS PASA regarding the use of e-auctions. NHS PASA led the way in the NHS on e Tendering, e Auctions and e Sourcing. As early as 2003-04 NHS PASA instigated a pilot project on the use of e auctions in the NHS. The e Auctions managed by the Agency delivered substantial savings and the NHS continues to benefits by the appropriate use of e auctions.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009, Official Report, column 532W, on health visitors: crimes of violence, whether the results of NHS staff surveys are available to the NHS Security Management Service. [291450]
Phil Hope: The results of national health service staff surveys, such as the 2008 Healthcare Commission survey, are in the public domain and so are available to the NHS Security Management Service.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the results of his Department's consultation on the use of 0845 telephone numbers by the NHS will be published. [289568]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The results of the Department's public consultation on the use of 084 numbers in the national health service were announced on 14 September 2009. The Department's response to the consultation is available on the ‘consultations’ section of the Department's website at:
www.dh.gov.uk/en/Consultations/Responsestoconsultations/index.htm
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009, Official Report, column 546W, on NHS: working hours, when the Department plans to communicate to the European Commission on the provisions of the Working Time (Amendment) Regulations. [289638]
Phil Hope: It is expected that information will be published following receipt of the European Commission's response to the Secretary of State's original notification to the Commission of our intention to derogate and our response in accordance with the directive.
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects the Family Nurse Partnership to be extended to the Huddersfield and Calderdale primary care trust area. [291800]
Phil Hope: Calderdale primary care trust has been running a Family Nurse Partnership (FNP) since September 2008. Kirklees primary care trust, which encompasses most of Huddersfield, started to test FNP in July this year.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) admission episodes and (b) discharge episodes with a primary or secondary diagnosis of (i) malnutrition, (ii) nutritional anaemias and (iii) other nutritional deficiencies were recorded in each primary care trust area of commissioning responsibility in the Hospital Episodes Statistics database in 2007-08. [289455]
Gillian Merron: The information requested has been placed in the Library.
David Tredinnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what assessment he has made of levels of variability across the country in levels of access for patients to (a) osteopathy and (b) other manual therapies; [289641]
(2) what procedures have been put in place to ensure primary care trusts are informed of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence guidelines on low back pain of June 2009, with particular reference to the recommendation that GPs consider referral of patients to a course of manual therapy such as osteopathy. [289642]
Gillian Merron: Decisions on which treatments to provide in the best interests of patients are the responsibility of the national health service at local level taking into account the differing health needs of different communities.
To aid implementation of National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidance such as that on lower back pain, NICE also develop tools, available on their website alongside the guidance, which offer advice on costings and commissioning. The guidance and tools can be accessed at
http://guidance.nice.org.uk/CG88
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the likely effect of a swine influenza pandemic and normal winter trends in hospital admissions on the availability of paediatric beds. [290009]
Gillian Merron: We continue to base our planning work with the national health service for the H1N1 pandemic on independent expert advice. The latest assumptions that we published on 3 September, assume that 1 per cent. of people who become ill with H1N1 will require hospitalisation. This would be above normal winter levels of flu activity and all NHS organisations have been planning to handle this if necessary, for both adult and paediatric services.
Measures that may be taken include the cancellation of out-patient services and elective admissions in order to free up staff and capacity to care for an increase in children admitted with H1N1.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 741W—continued
In April this year, the Department also published guidance on “Managing Demand and Capacity in Health Care organisations (Surge)”. The document gives guidance on measures the NHS can take to handle the pressures it will face, including in providing paediatric care during a pandemic. A copy of the guidance has already been placed in the Library.
To further support local planning, on 10 September, a strategy for critical care services was published that in part set out how the NHS would work to substantially increase availability of paediatric intensive care beds should this be required at the peak of the pandemic. A copy has been placed in the Library.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the likely change in numbers of paediatric beds available between 2010 and 2012; and what assessment he has made of the likely effects of that change on winter planning during that period. [290021]
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he plans to take to strengthen mechanisms to improve implementation of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence's clinical guidelines on Parkinson's Disease dated 2006, in light of the relevant recommendations contained in High Quality Care for All. [289565]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: We have no plans to strengthen mechanisms to improve the implementation of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence's clinical guidelines on Parkinson's disease. It is the responsibility of individual health professionals to ensure they comply with all existing clinical guidelines when providing health and social care.
From April 2009, the Care Quality Commission took over from the Healthcare Commission and will consider, in discussion with stakeholders including NICE, how to take account of NICE guidance as it develops its compliance criteria.
Jim Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent reports he has received of the prevalence of the automatic ordering of repeat prescriptions; and if he will take steps to end the practice. [290100]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: I am told that the Department has received one report of automatic ordering of repeat prescriptions by pharmacies. The terms of service of pharmacists (Schedule 1 of the National Health Service (Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2005) include a number of provisions relevant to this issue. For example, paragraph 10 (a) and (c) of the terms of service makes provision for pharmacists to ensure that appropriate advice is given to patients, in particular with regards to the request of repeatable prescriptions.
This is supported by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain’s (RPSGB) professional standards and guidance for patient consent, which makes clear that
patients have a basic right to be involved in decisions about their health care and the process of obtaining consent is fundamental for patient autonomy. Obtaining consent is an on-going process and not a single event.
It is for primary care trusts to take action in relation to any breach of pharmacists’ terms of service and for the RPSGB to take action in relation to any breach of professional standards.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) pursuant to the answer of 3 July 2009, Official Report, column 486W, on prescription: fees and charges, for what reasons the projections for revenue from prescription charges do not take account of proposals to exempt from such charges those with long-term conditions; [290227]
(2) pursuant to the answer of 3 July 2009, Official Report, column 486W, on prescription: fees and charges, for what reason the preparations for prescription charge income do not take into account his Department's proposals in relation to the exemption from prescription charges of people with long-term illnesses. [290311]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Forecasts for 2009-10 and 2010-11 in the departmental report 2009 (Cm 7593) take no account of the effect of the Government's decision to exempt patients with long term conditions from prescription charges because the cost and timeframe for the phasing in of the long term conditions exemption will depend on the recommendations set out in Professor Ian Gilmore's review, which is due to report in the autumn.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made towards ending prescription charges for all people with long-term medical conditions. [292141]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Gloucester (Mr. Dhanda) on 14 September 2009, Official Report, column 2167W.
Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in the Tamworth constituency have received prescriptions without charge since such exemptions were introduced. [291466]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: This information is not held centrally.
The Department does not know the number of people for whom prescription items are dispensed because the information collected is based on the number of prescription items dispensed in the community. These data are not available at a constituency level. The latest data for England (for 2008) show that around 93 per cent., of prescription items were not charged for at the point of dispensing, either because the patient was not liable to pay a charge, or because they held a valid prescription pre-payment certificate.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what changes to the amount of funding allocated to primary care trusts in Hertfordshire there have been in the course of 2009-10; and what such changes he anticipates in the course of 2010-11. [289410]
Phil Hope: Revenue allocations are made to primary care trusts (PCTs) on the basis of the relative needs of the populations they serve. The following table provides the revenue allocations made to East and North Hertfordshire PCT and West Hertfordshire PCT for 2009-10 and 2010-11.
No changes have been made to revenue allocations during the course of 2009-10. There are no plans to change the revenue allocations for 2010-11.
| £000 | ||
| Revenue allocation | ||
| PCT | 2009-10 | 2010-11 |
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which primary care trusts in Hertfordshire have a financial deficit against their budget for 2009-10; and how much the deficit is in each such case. [289412]
Phil Hope: Information published in the Director General for NHS Finance, Performance and Operations report “The Quarter” show that neither East and North Hertfordshire Primary Care Trust (PCT) nor West Hertfordshire PCT are forecasting a deficit in the 2009-10 financial year. The following table shows that both PCTs were forecasting a surplus.
| 2009-10 quarter 1 forecast outturn (£000) | |
The 2009-10 and 2010-11 PCT revenue allocations represent £164 billion investment in the national health service, £80 billion in 2009-10 and £84 billion in 2010-11. PCTs received an average increase in funding of 5.5 per cent. in 2009-10 and will receive an average increase in funding of 5.5 per cent. in 2010-11, a total increase in funding of £8.6 billion.
The following table provides the two year revenue allocations made to PCTs in Hertfordshire for 2009-10 and 2010-11 along with the cash and percentage increases. East and North Hertfordshire PCT will be 0.6 per cent. under target in 2010-11, West Hertfordshire PCT will be 5.3 per cent. above target in 2010-11.
| PCT | 2009-10 allocation (£000) | 2010-11 allocation (£000) | Two-year cash increase (£000) | Two-year cash increase (percentage) |
Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 20 April 2009, Official Report, column 479W, on respiratory system, to how many patients in each age group the figures on (a) hospital and (b) admission episodes related in each case. [289570]
Phil Hope: The following table shows hospital episodes and admission episodes for diseases of the respiratory system by age group. Data has been provided for the hospitals referred to in the answer of 20 April 2009, Official Report, column 479W.
| Number of finished consultant episodes and finished admission episodes for di seases of the reparatory system( 1) , by provider, 2003-04 to 2007-08, activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector | ||||||||||||
| Finished consultant episode | Finished admission episode | |||||||||||
| Provider | Provider code age on admission | 2007- 20 08 | 2006- 20 07 | 2005- 20 06 | 2004- 20 05 | 2003- 20 04 | 2007- 20 08 | 2006- 20 07 | 2005- 20 06 | 2004- 20 05 | 2003- 20 04 | |
| Notes: Ungrossed data Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data (ie the data are ungrossed). Finished Consultant Episode (FCE) A finished consultant episode (FCE) is defined as a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. Please note that the figures do not represent the number of different patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the same stay in hospital or in different stays in the same year. Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode is the first period of inpatient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Finished admission episodes are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of inpatients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. Number of episodes in which the patient had a (named) primary or secondary diagnosis These figures represent the number of episodes where the diagnosis was recorded in any of the 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and 7 prior to 2002-03) primary and secondary diagnosis fields in a Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) record. Each episode is only counted once in each count, even if the diagnosis is recorded in more than one diagnosis field of the record. (1 )The following ICD-10 codes have been used: J00-J99—‘Diseases of the respiratory disease’. Please see the following table for J00-J99 sheet for ICD-code descriptions. Data quality HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 National Health Service trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) in England. Data are also received from a number of independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data via HES processes. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain. Assessing growth through time HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. The quality and coverage of the data have improved over time. These improvements in information submitted by the NHS have been particularly marked in the earlier years and need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. Some of the increase in figures for later years (particularly 2006-07 onwards) may be due to the improvement in the coverage of independent sector activity. Changes in NHS practice also need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. For example, a number of procedures may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and may no longer be accounted for in the HES data. This may account for any reductions in activity over time. Small numbers To protect patient confidentiality, figures between 1 and 5 have been suppressed and replaced with “*” (an asterisk). Where it was possible to identify numbers from the total due to a single suppressed number in a row or column, an additional number (the next smallest) has been suppressed. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics HES. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care. | ||||||||||||
12 Oct 2009 : Column 748W—continued
| Diseases of the respiratory system | |
| Diagnosis code | Primary description |
|
Acute upper respiratory infections of multiple and unspecified sites | |
|
Respiratory cond’s due to inhalation of chemicals, gases, fumes and vapours | |
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of (a) inpatient and (b) outpatient attendances in the rheumatology speciality in the latest year for which figures are available; and at what average cost. [289457]
Phil Hope: We have made no estimate of the number, or cost, of in-patient and out-patient attendances for rheumatology.
However, the total number of ordinary, and day case admissions, to hospital where the main consultant specialty is recorded as rheumatology is given in the following table.
| Day case | Ordinary | |
| Note: A finished admission episode is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. Finished admission episodes are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. | ||
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what proportion of mental health NHS provider organisations are implementing the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence clinical guideline update for Schizophrenia; [290314]
(2) what steps he is taking to (a) publicise and (b) implement the recommendations of the updated National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence clinical guideline update for schizophrenia; [290315]
(3) what (a) support and (b) guidance has been made available to healthcare professionals to facilitate adherence to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence clinical guideline update on schizophrenia; and whether he has put in place ongoing monitoring to assess the implementation of the guidance by healthcare professionals. [290316]
Phil Hope: We welcome the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence’s (NICEs) updated guidance on schizophrenia and expect it to help further improve the quality of treatment and care for people with schizophrenia.
It is for NICE to publicise the release of its guidance to the national health service and it is for the NHS to implement it. NICE publishes implementation tools to help the NHS implement its guidance locally.
Clinicians are responsible for deciding on the most appropriate form of treatment for their patients, and in doing so they are expected to take NICE guidance fully into account. The Department does not become involved in clinical decisions, nor does it collect data on implementation levels of this NICE guidance among NHS organisations.
NICE issues both technology appraisals (TAs) and clinical guidelines (CGs) and the schizophrenia guidance issued this March is a CG. Clinicians are expected to consider treatments outlined in CGs when considering prescribing options, but are not obliged to prescribe these. As CGs are very broad in approach and can contain 100 or more recommendations, health bodies should implement the guidance as and when resources permit.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how the Care Quality Commission is monitoring adherence to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence clinical guideline update on schizophrenia; and what steps it will take in respect of NHS organisations found to be non-compliant. [290317]
Phil Hope: There are no plans for the Care Quality Commission to monitor adherence with the clinical guideline on schizophrenia published by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).
ICE clinical guidelines support national health service commissioning and best practice in service provision, but compliance with these are not direct indicators of levels of safety and quality. The Department expects NHS organisations to work towards full implementation
of NICE clinical guidelines over a reasonable period of time using available resources.
Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he made of the number of secondary schools which employ a school nurse; and what estimate he has made of the number of school nurse posts to be established in secondary schools in the next 12 months. [292116]
Phil Hope: There are about 3,000 secondary schools. The 2008 NHS Workforce Census shows there were 3,643 qualified nurses in school nursing areas,(2,634 full time equivalent), an increase of 63 per cent. since 2004. Of these, there were 1,447 (headcount) school nurses with a post registration school nurse qualification (1,062 full time equivalent), an increase of 69 per cent. since 2004.
It is for individual primary care trusts to determine how to use the funding allocated to them to commission services to meet the health care needs of their local populations over the next 12 months.
The overall number of professionals within community services for children and families has increased. School nurses are able to access more resources than was traditionally the case.
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in (a) Bolton and (b) Greater Manchester have received assistance from the NHS to stop smoking in each of the last five years. [291645]
Gillian Merron: The information is not available in the format requested. The following table shows the number of people setting a quit date and the number of those who successfully quit smoking through national health service stop smoking services in the Bolton primary care trust (PCT) and Greater Manchester, 2004-05 to 2008-09.
12 Oct 2009 : Column 752W—continued
| Bolton PCT( 1) | Greater Manchester strategic health authority (SHA)( 2'3) | |
| (1) Bolton PCT was unaffected by the PCT restructuring which took place in October 2006. (2) Figures for Greater Manchester SHA were calculated using the constituent PCTs for 2004-05 to 2006-07. Although this SHA did not exist in subsequent years as a result of restructuring, the new PCTs which the constituent old PCTs mapped to have been identified in order to produce figures on the same basis for comparability in 2007-08. (3) This data is based on figures collected through the quarterly stop smoking services data collection return. If a person sets more than one quit data in the quarter, the details of each attempt should be recorded on the form. (4) A client is counted as having successfully quit smoking at the four week follow-up if he/she has not smoked at all since two weeks after the quit date. Notes: 1. The figures provided for 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07 have been extracted from the corresponding annual Statistics on NHS stop smoking services in England report for each of these years. These publications have already been placed in the Library. 2. Bolton PCT figures provided for 2007-08 and 2008-09 have been extracted from the corresponding annual Statistics on NHS stop smoking services in England report for each of these years. Greater Manchester SHA figures were not published in these later reports(2). These publications have already been placed in the Library. 3. On the basis that the clinical viewpoint tends to be that a client should not be counted as a ‘failure’ if he/she has smoked in the difficult first days after the quit date, a client is counted as having successfully quit smoking if he/she has not smoked at all since two weeks after the quit date. The four week follow-up (and Carbon Monoxide (CO) validation, if appropriate) must be completed within six weeks of the quit date. Persons not contacted within this time are treated as lost to follow-up for evaluation purposes. 4. Only people who set a quit date through the NHS stop smoking services are included in the quarterly monitoring returns, those who attend the service but do not set a quit date are not included. 5. NHS stop smoking services data are based on the PCTs which provide the service. People using their services are not necessarily resident in that PCT. 6. The information centre for health and social care collects data from the NHS stop smoking services as part of the NHS stop smoking services quarterly monitoring returns forms, undertaken since 2005 on behalf of the Department. Source: The Information Centre for health and social care | ||
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to increase provision of social care support in (a) England and (b) Coventry. [289302]
Phil Hope: The direction of travel for adult social care is set out in “Putting People First”, the shared vision and commitment to the transformation of adult social care, published in December 2007. It is confirmed in the Green Paper, “Shaping the Future of Care Together”, which was published in July this year.
“Putting People First” commits to significant change by April 2011. It confirms that reform of social care can only be delivered through partnership across central and local government. It is holistic in its approach to delivering social care services for all individuals in the community, not just those eligible for statutory support.
“Putting People First” clearly sets out a vision of a universal offer to the entire community, including social care service users. Not only will this increase the provision of social care support, but the strategic shift towards prevention and early intervention services is designed to provide more help to people with lower level care needs, to reduce the likelihood that they will need more intensive services in the longer term and to help them retain their independence.
By the end of 2009-10, this Government will have increased local government funding by 45 per cent. in real terms since 1997. These are unprecedented rises in funding to local councils and provide the resources they need to improve the provision of care and support for their populations.
The Department is investing circa £3.5 billion over this comprehensive spending review period to support improvements in the provision of social care. In particular, the social care reform grant will provide over £500 million for the reform and transformation of adult social care. In 2009-10, Coventry will receive approximately £8 million of revenue and capital grants from Department to help support this agenda.
For the longer term, the Green Paper, “Shaping the Future of Care Together”, together with the public consultation, “The Big Care Debate”, which will run until 13 November, is addressing the national and local challenges we face in providing care and support in the future.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government are taking to ensure consistent levels of provision of social care support across the country. [289303]
Phil Hope: The fairer access to care services (FACS) has just been revised and is out for consultation until 6 October 2009.
The Commission for Social Care Inspectorate's (CSCI) state of social care report 2006-07 identified a trend for councils to raise their eligibility thresholds and the potential implications for people seeking support. In the light of recommendations made by CSCI in their report “Cutting the Cake Fairly: CSCI review of eligibility criteria for social care” (October 2008), the Government worked with stakeholders to revise the FACS guidance. The revision of the FACS guidance is aimed at bringing about improvements to the system as it currently stands, making implementation fairer and more consistent for people seeking support and reinforcing the current direction of policy established by “Putting People First”, a copy of which has already been placed in the Library.
The “Fairer Contribution Guidance” was also published on 14 July 2009 to accompany the existing “Fairer Charging guidance”. Copies have been placed in the Library. This provides councils with a model to help them decide how much (if anything) a person should contribute to their personal budget. Councils will be expected to implement the “Fairer Contributions Guidance” by March 2010.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department provides to local authorities on application of criteria of (a) substantial and (b) critical needs in decisions on eligibility for adult social care services; what powers local authorities have to limit provision of such services to people with those categories of need; and if he will make a statement. [289304]
Phil Hope: The Fairer Access to Care Services (FACS) guidance (June 2003), a copy of which has already been placed in the Library, sets a framework to help local authorities identify those people who are eligible for social care services. The FACS guidance sets out four eligibility bands of criteria (Critical, Substantial, Moderate and Low).
The Commission for Social Care Inspectorate’s (CSCI) State of Social Care report 2006-07 identified a trend for councils to raise their eligibility thresholds and the potential implications for people seeking support. In the light of recommendations made by CSCI in their report “Cutting the Cake Fairly: CSCI review of eligibility criteria for social care” (October 2008), the Government have been working with stakeholders to revise the FACS guidance and this is out for consultation until 6 October 2009.
The revision of the FACS guidance is aimed at bringing about improvements to the system as it currently stands, making implementation fairer and more consistent for people seeking support and reinforcing the current direction of policy established by “Putting People First”, a copy of which has already been placed in the Library.
The Fairer Contribution Guidance was published on 14 July 2009 to accompany the existing Fairer Charging guidance. Copies have been placed in the Library. This provides councils with a model to help them decide how much (if anything) a person should contribute to their personal budget. Councils will be expected to implement the Fairer Contributions Guidance by March 2010.
Local authorities must ensure that everyone who is eligible for social care has their needs met.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many packages of care were provided by local authorities to clients with (a) physical disability and (b) rheumatoid arthritis in the latest year for which figures are available; and at what (i) gross and (ii) net cost. [289456]
Phil Hope: Central data collated in 2007-08, show that the number of adults (aged 18 and over) with a physical disability or sensory impairment and receiving care services was 221,000 adults (aged 18-64) and 1.045 million adults (aged 65 and over).
The gross current expenditure on adults aged 18-64 with a physical disability or sensory impairment was £1.48 billion in 2007-08, and the net current expenditure on adults aged 18-64 with a physical disability or sensory impairment was £1.39 billion in 2007-08.
Data are not collected centrally on the gross and net costs of adults aged 65 and over with a physical disability or individually broken down to show packages of care for rheumatoid arthritis and the associated costs.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the Care Quality Commission plans to conduct a State of Social Care review for (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10. [290394]
Phil Hope:
The Health and Social Care Act 2008 requires the Care Quality Commission to report annually on the provision of national health service care during the year, the provision of adult social care services during the year, and the carrying on of regulated activities
during the year. The Care Quality Commission has informed us it is planning an integrated report on the state of health care and adult social care in England. It will lay its first annual report to parliament to cover the year 2008-09 and its second report will cover the year 2009-10.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when in 2010 he plans to publish a White Paper on social care. [290396]
Phil Hope: The care and support Green Paper, ‘Shaping the Future of Care Together’, announced that the Government will publish a White Paper in 2010. The consultation on the Green Paper will run until 13 November 2009 and we will make further announcements about the timing of the White Paper in due course.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the merits of making changes to the Disability Living Allowance programme as part of his proposals on social care. [290398]
Jonathan Shaw: I have been asked to reply.
The Green Paper "Shaping the Future of Care Together" set out the reasons for considering the future role of disability benefits in the context of the social care review. It proposed that one option is to bring some disability benefits and the new social care system together into a single system, as a better way of providing support. However, it is important to note that this is a consultation exercise for long-term reform and no final decisions have been made on the specific merits of changing the Disability Living Allowance programme. We are seeking the views of all stakeholders in further developing these proposals.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health during which month in 2010 he expects his Department's White Paper on care and support to be published. [291863]
Phil Hope: The care and support Green Paper, ‘Shaping the Future of Care Together’, announced that the Government will publish a White Paper in 2010. The consultation on the Green Paper will run until 13 November 2009 and we will make further announcements about the timing of the White Paper in due course.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to page 106 of his Department's Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, on what evidence the estimate that a quarter or a third of basic care and support costs could be paid for by the state was based; and what estimate he made of the cost of (a) a quarter and (b) a third of all annual care and support. [291865]
Phil Hope: The Personal Social Services Research Unit (PSSRU) at the University of Kent and the London School of Economics have carried out analysis to model the cost of the Green Paper funding options. The statement that under Partnership a third to a quarter of basic care and support costs could be paid for by the state is based on that analysis.
We expect to publish shortly a report by PSSRU outlining the modelling and costs of the Green Paper funding options. A copy will be placed in the Library.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department has produced an impact assessment for the proposal in the Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together, to use attendance allowance to help to fund social care; what estimate he has made of the number of people who will receive social care under such arrangements in the next 12 months; and which categories of people will be prioritised under these arrangements. [292100]
Phil Hope: The Department published a regulatory impact assessment alongside the Green Paper “Shaping the Future of Care Together” which sets out the estimated costs and implications of the funding models discussed. The impact assessment is available online at:
http://careandsupport.direct.gov.uk/greenpaper/the-green-paper-and-supporting-documents/
A copy has been placed in the Library.
Due to the wide range of reforms proposed within the Green Paper, full introduction of a new care and support system will be around 2014 at the earliest.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for (a) Scotland, (b) Wales and (c) Northern Ireland on the implementation of proposals contained in the Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together. [292103]
Phil Hope: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State wrote to Ministers in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland to provide them with the full text of the Green Paper prior to publication. Departmental officials have been in regular contact with their counterparts in the Devolved Administrations and a further series of meetings are planned.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what role he plans for GPs in the proposed National Care Service as set out in the Green Paper, Shaping the future of care together; and what arrangements he plans to put in place for the provision of National Care Service to patients resident in England and registered with GP practices in Wales. [292104]
Phil Hope: Care and support covers a range of reserved and devolved issues. Where matters are devolved, there will inevitably be consequences for people who live near the geographical boundaries between two areas with different policies. This is the case with the current system. We will continue to work with the devolved Administrations to ensure the implications of the Green Paper for people living near the borders are fully understood.
We do not envisage the new national care service altering any existing cross-border provision of health services. For example, the new national care service will not mean that patients in England who are registered with general practitioners in Wales cannot continue this arrangement.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to publish (a) the responses to and (b) the conclusions of his Department's consultation on its social care Green Paper. [292536]
12 Oct 2009 : Column 757W—continued
Phil Hope: The Big Care Debate closes on 13 November 2009. The Government's response to the consultation will be published after this date.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much he expects his proposals for the creation of a National Care Service to cost; which organisations he expects to comprise the service; what assessment he has made of the likely effects of his proposals on (a) existing (i) NHS and (ii) social care budgets and (b) existing local authority provision of social care. [292537]
Phil Hope: We believe that reform of the care and support system is necessary in order to make the long term care costs sustainable for the State and the individual. The Impact Assessment for the Green Paper ‘Shaping the Future of Care Together’ suggested that a National Care Service could cost the State between £18.2 billion and £20.7 billion in 2014, depending on the funding model chosen. These are illustrative comparative costs suggesting the possible cost to the state of the different models. These are indicative only and could be subject to change. Costs would be met from within the public spending envelope set for future spending reviews, which will be in line with the plans for fiscal consolidation set out at Budget 2009.
Local authorities are key to the delivery of our vision for the future. This Green Paper underlines the important, continued and strengthened role they will play under reform, in any future funding system. But we also know that one of the most common problems with care and support is an apparent lack of connection between different services, particularly health, social care, housing and benefits. So a central plank of a National Care Service will be a coherent strategy centred on patients, care-users and their carers, to support local leaders to make sure that joined-up services are delivered.
Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what guidance his Department provides to health professionals on implementation in maternity units of the guidelines issued by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists for preventing Group B streptococcus infection in newborn babies; [292168]
(2) if he will take steps to ensure that pregnant women are informed about Group B streptococcus as part of their antenatal care. [292169]
Ann Keen: Current guidance for obstetricians, midwives and neonatologists is provided by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) which published its Green-top guideline No. 36 on the prevention of early-onset neonatal group B streptococcus disease in November 2003. In 2005, the RCOG, in collaboration with the National Screening Committee, established a national audit to evaluate practice in United Kingdom obstetric units against the recommendations of the guideline. The audit published in January 2007, reported that current practice followed the established patterns of care described in the RCOG guideline.
The Department supports the Maternity Standards published by the RCOG in 2008, which state that maternity services should comply with evidence-based guidelines for the provision of high-quality clinical care.
Information for women on group B streptococcus is contained in “the Pregnancy book” a guide to health pregnancy, labour and giving birth, life with your new baby, which is given to all pregnant women during their antenatal care. A copy has already been placed in the Library. Information is also available on NHS Direct and NHS Choices website. Women who are concerned are advised to talk to their doctor or midwife.
Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment has been made of the implications for his policy of the most recent evidence on testing pregnant women for Group B streptococcus. [292170]
Ann Keen: The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) reviewed the policy for screening for Group B Streptococcus in pregnancy in March 2009 and concluded that the evidence did not support its introduction. The UK NSC will review its position on screening in three years time unless any significant evidence emerges which suggests this should be undertaken earlier.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) whether patients who have had strokes qualify for continuing healthcare assessment; [292359]
(2) what criteria govern the award of continuing healthcare assessment to patients who have had strokes. [292371]
Phil Hope: A revised national framework for continuing care was published in August 2009. This framework covers those patients who have had strokes as the eligibility criteria for continuing care is not disease specific. A copy of the framework has been placed in the Library.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with representatives of (a) primary care trusts and (b) hospitals on their preparations for a swine influenza outbreak. [289493]
Gillian Merron: The Secretary of State for Health meets regularly with the NHS chief executive and the NHS flu resilience director, who are responsible for ensuring the national health service is prepared for a swine flu outbreak.
On 2 July, the national director for NHS flu resilience, Ian Dalton, wrote to all NHS chief executives to make clear the expectation that preparedness plans need to be reviewed and subjected to further testing.
To further support local planning, on 10 September, a strategy for critical care services was published that sets out how ventilated critical care capacity can be increased in the NHS during the peak weeks of a potential second wave of swine flu. The published full critical care strategy sets out how the NHS will collectively achieve this increase. A copy has been placed in the Library.
On 10 September, the national director for pandemic influenza preparedness, Lindsey Davies, also hosted a pandemic flu conference on the theme of “Looking back, moving forward”. The conference, attended by 375 delegates, was open to strategic health authorities,
primary care trusts and local authority representatives with health and social care responsibilities. The focus of the day was on the swine flu response to date, delivering the swine flu vaccination programme, the challenges that lie ahead and sharing best practice.
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on informing the British tourism industry on the effect of the swine influenza pandemic in the UK. [289657]
Gillian Merron: The Civil Contingencies Committee has been meeting regularly since the swine flu outbreak, and is chaired by the Secretary of State for Health. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport attends these meetings at which all elements of the Government's response to the swine influenza pandemic are discussed.
Throughout the outbreak, the Government have provided a wide range of advice to businesses generally about the impacts swine flu could have on them, through mechanisms such as the Business Advisory Network on Flu and the BusinessLink website. Planning assumptions have been issued which are of use to all sectors.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what criteria his Department uses to identify epidemic levels of swine influenza in an area; and in which areas such levels have been identified to date. [290152]
Gillian Merron: We are now relying on clinical diagnosis instead of laboratory confirmation to identify cases of swine flu.
The rates of general practitioner (GP) consultations for influenza like illness from a sample of participating GP practices is used to identify epidemic levels of swine flu activity in an area.
The current criteria used to define the level of flu activity are:
Baseline (outside of a normal flu season) activity (<30 GP consultations per 100,000) during a week;
Normal seasonal activity (30-200 GP consultations per 100,000) during a week; and
Epidemic activity (>200 GP consultations per 100,000 people) during a week.
Strategic health authorities that experienced levels of above 200 GP consultations per 100,000 population over the summer of 2009 are:
London;
North East;
East Midlands;
North West;
West Midlands;
South West; and
South East Coast.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many calls the swine flu information line had received on the latest date for which figures are available; and how much his Department has spent on that service. [291783]
Gillian Merron: As of 5 pm 25 September 2009, around 1.3 million calls to the Information Line were received.
Up to 30 September, the Department has spent around £230,000 on the provision of the service.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the Statement of 20 July 2009, Official Report, columns 583-5, on swine flu, which groups will be regarded as higher risk for the purposes of vaccine prioritisation. [291856]
Gillian Merron: Based on advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, the following groups will be the first to be vaccinated with H1N1 swine flu vaccine, in the following order:
individuals aged between six months and up to 65 years in the current seasonal flu vaccine clinical at-risk groups;
all pregnant women, subject to licensing conditions on trimesters;
household contacts of immuno-compromised individuals; and
people aged 65 years and over in the current seasonal flu vaccine clinical at-risk groups.
In addition to this, front line health and social care workers will be offered the vaccine at the same time as the first clinical at risk groups as they are at increased risk of infection and of transmitting that infection to susceptible patients.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the Statement of 20 July 2009, Official Report, columns 583-5, on swine flu, if he will place in the Library a copy of the analysis he received which showed that the initial containment policy for swine flu worked well. [291857]
Gillian Merron: The Health Protection Agency has worked with independent academic experts to analyse the impact of the containment policy on the spread of the virus in the United Kingdom. This work has been submitted for publication and a copy of the publication will be placed in the Library when it is available.
The Health Protection Agency is also conducting a full review of the containment phase that is expected to be completed in early 2010.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) with reference to the Statement of 20 July 2009, Official Report, columns 583-5, on swine flu, how many people will be employed to staff the interim flu line service; and how many calls per day the interim service will be capable of handling; [291858]
(2) how many courses of antivirals have been dispensed for the treatment of patients with swine flu in each (a) age group and (b) primary care trust since 2 July 2009; [291861]
(3) pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2009, Official Report, column 671W, on swine flu, what the additional antiviral collection point functionality added to the flu line service is; [291866]
(4) what the differences are between the full National Pandemic Flu Line Service and the interim solution. [291867]
Gillian Merron:
The interim National Pandemic Flu Service (NPFS) launched with 1,500 concurrent seats from seven call centre operators, operating from 19 sites across the United Kingdom. Over 3,500 agents were
initially trained to provide the service. The agents are employed by a range of private and public sector call centre operators to ensure that the service can flexibly operate seat and agent supply to meet public demand.
The service is capable of operating 7,500 concurrent call centre seats. This level of operation, if required, would enable around 1 million calls in a 24 hour period to be handled by call centre operators in addition to those using the web service.
From the launch of the interim NPFS on 23 July 2009 to 29 September 2009, around 590,000 antivirals were dispensed for treatment of patients. The breakdown by age group and primary care trust is shown in the following tables.
These figures relate solely to antivirals collected through the NPFS, as antivirals distributed between 2-22 July 2009 were distributed through normal primary care routes and by the Health Protection Agency; those data are still being collated.
The antiviral collection point system that has been developed enables members of staff in collection points to:
check the validity of an authorisation number generated by the NPFS;
check and confirm the name of the patient and the antiviral and dose authorised;
check that the authorisation number has not been used previously to collect an antiviral;
record the checking of identification (ID), and types of ID provided by the flu friend for themselves and the patient;
record the details of the flu friend who has collected the antiviral;
record the collection of the antiviral to prevent the authorisation number being used more than once; and
provide regular information on the number of antivirals issued using an authorisation number.
The autumn solution (i.e. full NPFS) does have increased functionality and offers a more flexible Information Technology platform.
Individuals who use the service will follow a very similar process to the current service. The main change from an individual's perspective is the additional ID functionality. An overview of additional functionality is as follows:
a dynamic algorithm will provide greater flexibility if the algorithm needs to be changed and enables changes to be processed more quickly;
an enhanced ID process: identification can be verified during the assessment as well as at the collection point;
the functionality to re-issue an authorisation number through NPFS will be available to enable patients who forget their authorisation number to re-contact the service quickly and efficiently to access a new number that can be used in an antiviral collection point; and
the autumn service is planned to offer additional languages on the web.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the Statement of 20 July 2009, Official Report, columns 583-5, on swine flu, which 110 primary care trusts had reported exceptional levels of flu like illness. [291859]
Gillian Merron: The primary care trusts (PCTs) that reported exceptional levels of flu like illness are:
Tower Hamlets PCT
Greenwich Teaching PCT
Islington PCT
Lewisham PCT
Leicester City PCT
Barking and Dagenham PCT
Harrow PCT
Bedfordshire PCT
Coventry Teaching PCT
Middlesbrough PCT
South Tyneside PCT
City and Hackney Teaching PCT
Telford and Wrekin PCT
Redbridge PCT
South Birmingham PCT
Hillingdon PCT
Sutton and Merton PCT
Lambeth PCT
Camden PCT
12 Oct 2009 : Column 763W—continued
Warrington PCT
Buckinghamshire PCT
Enfield PCT
Brent Teaching PCT
Blackburn with Darwen PCT
County Durham PCT
East Sussex Downs and Weald PCT
Manchester PCT
Newham PCT
Gateshead PCT
Northumberland Care Trust
South Staffordshire PCT
Sunderland Teaching PCT
West Kent PCT
Peterborough PCT
Southwark PCT
Ealing PCT
Havering PCT
Portsmouth City Teaching PCT
Somerset PCT
Blackpool PCT
North Tyneside PCT
Redcar and Cleveland PCT
Halton and St. Helens PCT
Nottinghamshire County PCT
Luton PCT
Warwickshire PCT
Nottingham City PCT
Oxfordshire PCT
Swindon PCT
Gloucestershire PCT
Hammersmith and Fulham PCT
Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale PCT
Brighton and Hove City PCT
Medway PCT
Leicestershire County and Rutland PCT
Kingston PCT
Unclassified
Central Lancashire PCT
Wandsworth PCT
Solihull Care Trust
West Hertfordshire PCT
Herefordshire PCT
Stockport PCT
Shropshire County PCT
Bromley PCT
Northamptonshire PCT
Cambridgeshire PCT
North Lancashire PCT
Bristol PCT
Derby City PCT
Westminster PCT
Eastern and Coastal Kent PCT
Wakefield District PCT
Southampton City PCT
Western Cheshire PCT
Suffolk PCT
Barnet PCT
South Gloucestershire PCT
Derbyshire County PCT
Waltham Forest PCT
Berkshire West PCT
Hampshire PCT
Newcastle PCT
Worcestershire PCT
Doncaster PCT
Hounslow PCT
East Lancashire PCT
Wirral PCT
Bolton PCT
North Yorkshire and York PCT
Liverpool PCT
Plymouth Teaching PCT
North Somerset PCT
Great Yarmouth and Waveney PCT
East and North Hertfordshire PCT
Croydon PCT
Central and Eastern Cheshire PCT
Lincolnshire PCT
Wolverhampton City PCT
West Sussex PCT
Stoke on Trent PCT
Surrey PCT
West Essex PCT
Knowsley PCT
Leeds PCT
Devon PCT
Norfolk PCT
Sefton PCT
Tameside and Glossop PCT
Milton Keynes PCT
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department had spent on the provision of information on swine flu; and how much further expenditure on such provision he has planned. [291862]
Gillian Merron:
Communicating accurate and timely information to the general public and health care professionals during the current swine flu pandemic has
been recognised as a priority by the Department and by the World Health Organisation.
We have communicated regularly via a range of channels including advertising, online information, technical and professional guidance and media briefing, including by Ministers, senior officials and clinicians.
Because of this, it is not possible to quantify accurately the cost of all this activity in producing information on swine flu, however we are able to give a figure for public advertising activity.
The cost of advertising and publicity activity in England on swine influenza, including the Swine Flu Information Phone Line, is approximately £8.2 million to date.
This may increase over the course of the pandemic. Various scenarios are being considered to allow a flexible response if swine flu escalates to ensure that the public have timely and accurate information about the disease, how to protect against it, and how to access treatment if they catch it.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans his Department has to provide vaccinations against swine influenza to homebound patients. [292317]
Ann Keen: The Department has asked primary care trusts and strategic health authorities to work with local national health service stakeholders to develop local plans to ensure that all of those identified in the Chief Medical Officer’s list of high priority groups receive their swine flu vaccinations. These plans should include provision for housebound patients.
The Department will be supporting this work by providing core materials about swine flu vaccination for staff training and communications with the public and NHS staff.
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of swine flu have been reported among residents of Birmingham, Sparkbrook & Small Heath constituency to date. [291587]
Gillian Merron: Data on the precise number of swine flu cases in a particular area is not available.
However, the Department does have data on the number of antivirals dispensed through the National Pandemic Flu Service (NPFS). We do not have figures specifically for the Sparkbrook and Small Heath constituency but we do have figures for the two primary care trusts (PCTs) which the constituency crosses. These show that:
Heart of Birmingham Teaching PCT: around 3,500 antivirals were collected between 23 July 2009 and 22 September 2009; and
NHS Birmingham East and North PCT (including part of the Small Heath area): around 3,800 antivirals were collected between 23 July 2009 and 22 September 2009.
These figures relate solely to antivirals collected through the NPFS since its launch on 23 July. Antivirals distributed prior to this time were distributed through normal primary care routes and by the Health Protection Agency; that data is still being collated.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate he has made of the number of NHS staff who have contracted (a) HIV/AIDS and (b) hepatitis C through a needlestick injury in each of the last five years; [291584]
(2) how many needlestick injuries have been recorded in each hospital trust in each of the last five years. [291585]
Gillian Merron: Information on the number of needlestick injuries to national health service staff in each hospital trust is not collected centrally.
However, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) collects information on significant occupational exposures to blood-borne viruses in health care workers in the United Kingdom. The HPA’s latest report “Eye of the Needle, United Kingdom Surveillance of Significant Occupational Exposures to Blood Borne Viruses in Healthcare Workers, November 2008” has been placed in the Library and is available on the HPA’s website at:
www.camr.org.uk/web/HPAwebFile/HPAweb-C/1205394781623
This report, which provides data up to the end of 2007, includes information on the number of documented cases of health care workers who have contracted HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C through a needlestick injury in 2004-07, which are summarised in the following table.
| Number of documented cases of health care workers who have contracted HIV and hepatitis C through a needlestick injury in the UK, 2004-07 | ||||
| Infection | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 |
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what the average shelf-life is of the Tamiflu the Government have in stock; [289237]
(2) what procedures the NHS has in place to ensure the use of the oldest stock of Tamiflu first. [289238]
Gillian Merron: The existing pandemic stockpile of Tamiflu was purchased in instalments between the autumn of 2006 and 2007 (totalling some 15 million treatment courses) and in spring 2009 (eight million treatment courses). This makes determining the average life of the stockpile difficult. All of this stock has a shelf life of five years so is currently well within its expiry date. However, following a decision of the European medicines regulator (the EMEA), stock produced after June 2009 will have a shelf life of seven years. We are currently discussing with Roche and with the medicines regulator both the implications of this decision and the possible extension of the shelf life of stock we hold.
A small amount of Tamiflu that we are making use of but that was not procured for pandemic flu planning will expire later in 2009. We expect that most of this stock will now have been used.
Stock currently held by the national health service for treatment of swine flu at antiviral collection points (ACPs) is used in accordance with guidance provided on stock rotation.
All ACPs have pharmaceutical oversight provided by senior primary care trust pharmacists, who ensure there are safe systems and processes in place for the safe management and supply of antiviral medicines.
Stock held in stockpile warehouses is managed by professional inventory and stock managers, and in accordance with standard inventory management practice on a “first in, first out” basis.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009, Official Report, column 550W, on telemedicine, in which (a) local authority and (b) primary care trust areas business has been procured through the PASA Telecare National Framework Agreement. [289637]
Phil Hope: This information is commercially confidential, as releasing it could give a commercial advantage to other organisations outside the framework agreement. The following table gives a high level breakdown of the number of organisations procuring through the framework.
| Organisation type | Number of organisations |
| Note: The table shows the number of purchasing points it was set up around a trust having one purchasing point put in practice some may have more than one. | |
12 Oct 2009 : Column 767W—continued
John Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to consult on the inclusion of venous thromboembolism risk assessment and prevention in the 2010-11 NHS Operating Framework. [291660]
Phil Hope: We expect the NHS Operating Framework for 2010-11 to be published later this year and we can confirm that it will include venous thromboembolism risk assessment and prevention.
John Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects his Department's venous thrombroembolism risk assessment model to be made available to all health professionals in the NHS through the National Programme for IT; and if he will make a statement. [291661]
Phil Hope:
We are currently looking to pilot the tool within a clinical setting and, if approved, the intention is that the tool together with the technology could be
evaluated at a number of sites. Subject to this work going ahead, the tool would then be available to download to national health service trusts at the same time as the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence publish their venous thrombroembolism clinical guidelines for all hospitalised patients.
John Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 1 July 2009, Official Report, column 356W, what progress has been made in his Department's work with the Office for National Statistics to provide the requested information; and if he will make a statement. [291573]
Phil Hope: The Office for National Statistics are still working on the data which is by nature quite complex, spanning many different areas. We have received some preliminary data and are continuing to work with them to produce meaningful information on episodes of venous thromboembolism.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will conduct an audit of the cost of residual value payments which may be made to providers of independent sector treatment centres (ISTC) projects contracted under the (a) first and (b) second wave of the ISTC programme. [290308]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: No. There is a duty to make a residual value payment at contract expiry where the requirement exists under the terms of an independent sector treatment centres contract.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he has issued to primary care trusts on the commissioning of services from independent sector treatment centres. [290309]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Department has not issued primary care trusts (PCTs) with guidance on the commissioning of services from independent sector treatment centres. It is for PCTs to determine their commissioning requirements.
The Department has requested that PCTs review their capacity requirements and has provided guidance to support the competitive procurement of treatment centre services. PCTs will review contracts on a case-by-case basis and commission new services where capacity is required.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the NHS tariff is for procedures undertaken in independent sector treatment centres. [290310]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The national health service tariff does not apply to procedures undertaken in Wave One and Phase Two Independent Sector Treatment Centres. Providers are paid for services according to the terms and conditions of their contracts. Future contracts to provide services from treatment centres will be paid at the NHS tariff.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for the management of the expiry of the contracts of phase one independent sector treatment centres. [290348]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Contracts for the centrally procured wave one independent sector treatment centres are scheduled to end from 2010. Each contract will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and new services will be commissioned where local commissioners determine that capacity is required.
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate he has made of the costs likely to be incurred by his Department in relation to its contractual obligations under phase one of the independent sector treatment centre programme after the expiry of phase one contracts. [290516]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The total potential expiry cost (including residual value) for wave one independent sector treatment centres is approximately £200 million.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost to the NHS of prescribing the drug Vioxx has been in each of the last two years. [292312]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The net ingredient cost (NIC) of prescription items written in the United Kingdom and dispensed in the community in England for 2007 and 2008, cannot be reported as the NIC was reimbursed for less than 50 prescription items. Reporting this figure could potentially identify individual patients.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to answer question (a) 279209, on the composition of his Department's Applications Committee, tabled on 11 June 2009 and (b) 283263, on the NHS IT Programme, tabled on 26 June 2009. [289567]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave him on 21 July 2009, Official Report, columns 1594W and 1609W.